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Fans of St. Joseph's need to have a little patience

Patience is not in the DNA of the typical college sports fan, so it's no surprise followers of the St. Joseph's Hawks are beginning to wonder if coach Phil Martelli has lost his touch.

Saint Joseph's has fallen from the heights it enjoyed in recent years. (Michael Bryant/Staff file photo)
Saint Joseph's has fallen from the heights it enjoyed in recent years. (Michael Bryant/Staff file photo)Read more

Patience is not in the DNA of the typical college sports fan, so it's no surprise followers of the St. Joseph's Hawks are beginning to wonder if coach Phil Martelli has lost his touch.

It's an understandable position if viewed through the narrow lens of the last season and a half, during which St. Joe's has lost twice as many games as it has won as it tries to end a four-game Atlantic Ten Conference losing streak Wednesday at home against Rhode Island.

It's certainly not the way the Hawks had hoped to christen their expanded and refurbished Hagan Arena.

There's no denying Martelli and his staff made some recruiting mistakes that led to the recent slide, and small universities with limited recruiting budgets and television exposure pay for miscalculations in recruiting. Schools such as St. Joe's do not get McDonald's all-Americans. Typically, their recruits need time to develop.

But anyone who suspects Martelli has lost his ability to be an effective coach is probably off base. If he was good enough to win six national coach-of-the-year awards in 2004, and good enough to lead a modestly talented team to the NCAA tourney in 2008, he probably hasn't suddenly forgotten how to build a conference contender.

Although this season's results so far are similar to last season's, there is no denying an upgrade in the talent level.

The fairest way to judge whether the Hawks are on their way back will be to see where they are at this point next season. That will require patience.