St. Joe’s upsets Richmond to post its first three-game winning streak since 2018

St. Joseph’s divides its season into chapters. Coach Billy Lange defines the chapters by trials and tribulations like player injuries and COVID-19 pauses, but also by big wins.

What has happened in the last 10 days doesn’t feel like a different chapter. It feels like an entirely different book.

The Hawks won one of their first 15 games this season. All of a sudden, they’ve won three straight after a road win Monday at Richmond. St. Joe’s was up three with 0.4 seconds left when Richmond’s Matt Grace made a corner three-pointer to tie the score at the buzzer. But after the review, the ball was still on Grace’s fingertips. Game over.

The Hawks defeated the Spiders, 76-73, at the Robins Center.

It was the third straight win for St. Joe’s (4-14, 3-9 Atlantic 10), the first time the Hawks have won three straight since November 2018. Wins over La Salle and Dayton were impressive, but beating Richmond (13-7, 6-5 A-10) was the Hawks’ most impressive win to date.

“We’ve played good basketball all year, but there is a delta between playing good basketball and being able to win,” Lange said. “That delta is usually shortened by having a great player and having players get better and understand what it takes to win.”

It’s no coincidence that the winning streak has happened since Ryan Daly returned from a thumb injury. Daly shot 5 of 16 and scored 14 points, but that doesn’t tell the story of his night. He created opportunities down the stretch and made timely shots. He finished a team-high plus-five in his 39 minutes.

“We have the most valuable player in our league,” Lange said. “He won’t win it because he’s only played three league games. And I say this with great humility because there are great players in our league.

“He helps the other players be better, and they help him do what he does.”

Taylor Funk continued his impressive streak of late with a team-high 22 points and four made threes. It was his third straight game of 20 or more points. All five Hawks starters reached double figures.

“Taylor has emerged as one of the top players in our conference,” Lange said.

Nathan Cayo scored a career-high 25 points and Jacob Gillyard added 18 for Richmond. The Hawks played some of their best defense this season in the first half before Richmond scored 48 after the break.

One chapter of the Hawks’ season was when they went toe-to-toe with Auburn and played Kansas tough. The game against Richmond felt similar when the Spiders tied the score at 59, but this story had a different ending. Freshman Jordan Hall came up the court and nailed an open three-pointer off a screen.

There were a number of big shots in the second half. Cameron Brown knocked down three three-pointers and scored 15 points. His corner two-pointer with 1 minute, 25 seconds left gave the Hawks a five-point lead.

If there was ever a time to get hot, the Hawks chose the right month. The madness of March is lurking, and St. Joe’s is playing its best basketball of the season.

The Hawks will draw La Salle in the first round of the A-10 tournament on Wednesday at 11 a.m.. The two city foes split their two regular-season matchups.

“I’ve said this and I really believe this; I think [La Salle] is the most dangerous team in the Atlantic 10,” Lange said. “They’ve got incredible scoring, they can turn you over, they’ve got an amazing point guard.”