UR Out Early in Atlantic 10 Conference

The University of Richmond’s stay in the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament was a short one for the third consecutive year.

Fifth-seeded Saint Joseph’s eliminated fourth-seeded UR 61-47 in the quarterfinals Thursday afternoon at Boardwalk Hall. Richmond hasn’t won an A-10 tournament game since beating Rhode Island in the opening round of 2005.

Saint Joseph’s outscored UR 16-0 during a first-half stretch, took a 10-point lead, and the Spiders never really threatened the Hawks the rest of the way. Richmond’s largest deficit was 19 points, with 5:15 left.

The Spiders (16-14) now wait for Sunday, when they’ll discover if they will be included in the fields of the National Invitation Tournament, of the College Basketball Invitational. The Hawks (20-11) advance to Friday afternoon’s semifinal vs. top-seeded Xavier, which eliminated Dayton in yesterday’s first quarterfinal.

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