Friday, Oct. 12 Youth is not an issue for Phil Martelli, whose team has five guys over 22 years old. The Hawks are older than the Sixers, and worry equally about Social Security and the NCAA Tournament. Aside from experience, the Hawks have real talent. Jameer Nelson is one of the top five playmakers in the country and can make you pay for backing off of him with a tighter jumpshot. Marvin O'Connor is a fiercely competitive scoring machine coming off the USA Basketball trials, in which he did not perform his best because of tendonitis. Bill Phillips plays the role of a poor man's Christian Laettner, now healthy after silently playing last year on bum wheels. The surprise for St. Joe's will be Delonte West, a bruising, aggressive slasher who can really score.

9
Saint Joseph's
LAST SEASON: 26-7
2001 FINAL RANKING
ESPN/USA Today: No. 24

Why No. 9?
The Hawks were the darling of the NCAA Tournament last season and they didn't even get to the Sweet 16. Marvin O'Connor's 37 points against Stanford and Jameer Nelson's spirited play at the point have coaches talking about this backcourt as one of the top three in the nation (perhaps behind Duke and Maryland). This isn't a reach. O'Connor is one of the best scorers, even if he didn't play as well during the summer to make the U.S. team that traveled to China for the World University Games. Nelson could be the best pure point in the nation because of his defense and his court savvy as a playmaker. He's not a scorer but understands where he can get his points. He's extremely tough to get past and jump starts the Hawks at both ends of the floor. Saint Joseph's has tremendous chemistry, largely because of the acceptance of roles. Bill Phillips is one of the better shooting forwards in the country, while Damian Reid and Na'im Crenshaw can crash the offensive backboard. The Hawks don't feature them as much, but Nelson gets them involved enough to keep them content. Their defense is tight and underrated in the post and gets taller when Alexandre Sazonov is in the game. Jamal Nichols could be the sleeper off the bench as another frontcourt scorer and Delonte West has been one of the better guards in individual workouts. This team has the passion to repeat as A-10 champs and is driven to get past the second round of the NCAAs.

Will Rise If ...
They can get more production out of the post to offset any attention on O'Connor and Nelson and continue to close up the middle against teams like Temple and Xavier. Saint Joseph's has the confidence to be a top 10 team and Phil Martelli is one of the most underrated game coaches in the game. He should shine with his best team yet.

Will Fall If ...
The Hawks can't react to switching defenses on the guards. O'Connor and Nelson might have to become more creative. They could see some gimmicks, meaning the frontcourt will have to be even more productive on the backboard.

-- Andy Katz, ESPN.com

SCOUTING REPORT: One A-10 coach's take on the Hawks

“

Clearly what they do very well is offensive rebound. You've got to contain Marvin O'Connor from having a career night. You got to beat them inside. You've got to attack their big guys as far as a top 10 team. The teams that have success against them are UMass and Xavier. You can pound them down low. Their backcourt is so strong. They're a little weak in the middle defensively. Containing Nelson isn't so easy, either. You can't let him drive. You've got to keep him outside. Defensively they don't do anything so great but they're the best offensive team in our league in terms of percentages and efficiency. Jameer is making everybody's job so much easier. Marvin can stand still and get his looks. That's the biggest thing. You've got to play Marvin honest. Nelson is what makes it all work. ”

2001-02 ST. JOSEPH'S ROSTER
Player	Yr.	Pos.	Ht./Wt.	Key 2000-01 Stats
(12) Tyrone Barley	So.	G	6-1/185	PTS: 1.4 | AST: 1.2 | FG%: 40.6
(34) John Bryant	Fr.	F	6-7/220	Redshirted during 2000-01 season
(33) Pat Carroll	Fr.	G	6-5/190	Arrives with good long-range jumper and room to grow
(20) Na'im Crenshaw	Sr.	G	6-5/180	PTS: 11.4 | REB: 3.3 | 3PT%: 39.8
(3) Mike Farrelly	Jr.	G	6-1/175	PTS: 0.4 | REB: 0.3 | AST: 0.5
(21) Dwayne Jones	Fr.	C	6-11/225	Looks like a candidate to redshirt
(10) Phil Martelli Jr.	Jr.	G	5-10/155	PTS: 0.5 | REB: 0.3 | AST: 0.1
(2) Jeff Miller	So.	G	6-6/215	PTS: 1.5 | REB: 1.2 | AST: 0.4
(14) Jameer Nelson	So.	G	6-0/190	PTS: 12.5 | REB: 4.0 | AST: 6.5
(23) Jamal Nichols	Fr.	F	6-8/225	Martelli nabbed Philly's top prep forward to fill a few minutes right away
(11) Marvin O'Connor	Sr.	G	6-4/200	PTS: 21.1 | FG%: 46.5 | 3PT%: 37.4
(24) Bill Phillips	Sr.	F	6-10/240	PTS: 11.6 | REB: 8.9 | FG%: 54.8
(25) Damian Reid	Sr.	F	6-9/240	PTS: 9.0 | REB: 6.5 | FG%: 61.5
(51) Alexandre Sazonov	Jr.	C	7-1/235	PTS: 4.9 | REB: 3.5 | FG%: 56.0
(15) Delonte West	Fr.	G	6-3/180	Won't be easy to get minutes in this backcourt, but the kid has a shot and skills
Head Coach: Phil Marelli (107-78, 8 years) Assistant Coaches: Matt Brady, Monte Ross, Mark Bass Home Court: Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse (3,200); Philadelphia

2001-02 SAINT JOSEPH'S SCHEDULE

November 15: E. Washington (a) 16: Cal/Princeton (b) 25: Colorado 28: at Delaware

December 1: Canisius 8: Penn (P) 10: Drexel 21: Georgia St. (c) 22: UNC/Charleston (d) 31: Gonzaga

January 5: at UMass 9: at Rhode Island 13: St. Bonaventure 16: Fordham 19: G. Washington 23: at Duquesne 26: Penn (P) 28: at Villanova 31: Rhode Island

February 2: at Temple 6: LaSalle (P) 9: at Fordham 13: at Richmond 16: at Xavier 19: UMass 23: Dayton 28: at St. Bonaventure

March 3: Temple (P) 6: A-10 Tournament