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Home > Blogs > Flyer Connection: University of Dayton sports > Archives > 2008 > November
November 2008
Marquette, other BCS schools ducking Dayton
Dayton and Marquette played every season from 1980-2003, sometimes twice a year, but don’t look for the rivalry to be renewed any time soon.
The schools began a 10-year contract when both played in the Great Midwest Conference, and Marquette said sayonaro once that ended.
“There’s nothing in the works,” said Tim Wabler, who will take over as UD athletic director on Jan. 1.
The Flyers target teams from BCS conferences but have virtually no chance of enticing them to UD Arena.
After the Flyers’ 89-75 upset of Marquette on a neutral court Saturday, and the win at UD Arena over Pittsburgh last year, it’s clear why the big-time schools duck Dayton. Coaches and ADs know how dangerous an opponent UD is, and they’re aware their less-knowledgeable fan bases wouldn’t be able to tolerate a loss to such a supposedly inferior school.
Wabler said UD is trying to set up home-and-away series with top schools from non-BCS conferences (like Creighton of the Missouri Valley Conference this year) while continuing to pursue squads from the power conferences in regular-season events like the Chicago Invitational Challenge.
The Flyers will play in the Puerto Rico Tip-off Classic in November 2009 and in the ESPN Old Spice Classic in Orlando two years after that.
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TweetFlyers keep composure, handle Marquette
Marquette plays a three-guard line-up, and each of those guards averages three steals a game.
That’s a phenomenal number. You know what happens when steals occur in the backcourt, right? It’s a lay-up at the other end.
Going into his team’s game with the 15th-ranked Golden Eagles, UD coach Brian Gregory wondered whether his team could hold up against those pack of thieves.
“I felt if we could take care of the ball, we’d have a chance,” he said.
The Flyers took care of the ball — they had just 11 turnovers while forcing Marquette into 14 — and pulled out a euphoric 89-75 victory Saturday.
UD has won three straight games against Big East teams and is 5-2 in the regular-season against BCS schools in the last three years. And while that lopsided win will be known around the nation as an upset, in reality it looked like two evenly matched teams athletically, and Marquette had the misfortune of catching the Flyers on a good night.
Senior Charles Little and his teammates played with an edge, in part because of what they felt was a superior attitude they sensed in the Golden Eagles whenever they crossed paths with them while staying at the Marriott in Hoffman Estates, Ill.
“We could tell they didn’t respect us. You could tell that in the hotel,” Little said. “They were looking at us like we didn’t belong. It is what it is. You’ve got to go out there and play.
“We knew if we went in there and defended and did things the way we’re supposed to we could play with anybody,” Little added.
It was an astounding turnaround for the Flyers, who shot just 28 percent against Auburn in a 60-59 overtime win the night before. It’s absurd for a team like UD not to celebrate any win over a BCS team, but the players probably had to work hard to feel good about that one.
Not the rout of Marquettte, though. The Flyers shot 53 percent from the field.
Nice.
“To turn around in back-to-back days and beat a Big East and SEC team is great,” guard London Warren said. “We have a lot of heart and a lot of fight. The guys we have now, we just don’t stop fighting. We just dig down and find a way to make it happen.”
The Flyers landed in the national polls last year after knocking off Louisville and Pittsburgh, and it will be interesting to see if they can climb into the top-25 again after jumping to 6-0.
Asked what the win does for his team in the national scheme, Gregory said: “We ain’t good enough to worry about anything but the next game. It’s fleeting. We’ve been there before. We have to control what we can control, and the only thing we can control is Monday’s practice.”
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TweetDayton pulls off upset of No. 15 Marquette
Point guard Rob Lowery scored 21 points to lead Dayton to an 89-75 upset of 15th-ranked Marquette in the Chicago Invitational Challenge on Saturday.
The Flyers led by as many as 18, had their lead sliced to eight with five minutes to go, but showed poise down the stretch to run their record to 6-0.
Marquette, a Big East Conference contender, fell to 5-1.
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TweetChicago Invitational Challenge finding niche
Eddie Fogler, who runs two college basketball holiday events in Las Vegas, is in his third year putting together the Chicago Invititational Challenge. And while his group hasn’t been able to land a national TV contract and attendance was sparse at this year’s event, he’s pleased with the progress so far.
“It’s competitive. There are a number of other tournaments coaches can look at,” he said. “I think this one makes a lot of sense. It’s Chicago. It’s a recruiting area. Fans can come because it’s close.”
Fogler, a former coach at Wichita State, Vanderbilt, and South Carolina, tries to give the event a Midwest flavor. The lure for the top programs is the format includes two home games and two potential RPI-enhancing games at a neutral site, as opposed to playing three times or so in a neutral setting.
Illinois, Indiana and Xavier have played in the event in the past, and the 2009 field includes Notre Dame, Northwestern, Saint Louis and Iowa State.
“I understand how important scheduling is in 15 years as a coach,” Fogler said. “I tell coaches, ‘Let me present the format, let me present the dates, let me present the competition. If this makes sense for you, maybe we can do it. If not, I won’t be offended.’ “
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TweetFlyers find shooting touch — in practice
The Flyers staged their morning shoot-around today at the Prairie Stone Sports and Wellness Center, about two miles from their hotel. Watching them hoist shot after shot with a high degree of accuracy, one UD assistant remarked, “God, we’re hitting everything.”
The Flyers sure didn’t resemble the team that nearly put a pro-UD crowd of about 1,500 to sleep with that “record-setting” shooting performance in the overtime victory against Auburn on Friday.
They went 0-for-24 from the 3-point line, setting an NCAA record for the highest number of 3-point attempts without a make, bumping Canisius, which had gone 0-for-22 during a 1995 game, from the top spot (or is it the low spot?).
Dayton athletic director Ted Kissell jokingly “congratulated” coach Brian Gregory this morning for making the NCAA record books. That was the first Gregory had heard about the mark, but he pointed out that the Flyers also pulled off another rarity, pulling down more rebounds (60) than their opponent had points (59).
The 11,000-seat Sears Centre, where the game was played, has U-shaped stands with deep backgrounds behind the baskets. It sort of resembles Miami’s Millett Hall. Maybe that had something to do with that abysmal effort. Auburn had its troubles, too, missing its first 16 three-pointers.
“I don’t think we were used to that court,” freshman Chris Johnson said. “I think we’ll figure it out tonight.”
They’ll need to if they want to give 15th-ranked Marquette a game. The Flyers are proving to be a superb rebounding and defensive team, but those strengths won’t be enough to beat the better teams on their schedule.
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TweetUD’s board work strong again
Notes in quotes from Dayton’s 60-59 overtime victory against Auburn …
The Flyers are out-rebounding opponents by almost 10 per game after giving the Tigers a 60-43 lathering.
“That’s one of the things we push — you’ve got to win on the boards,” said center Kurt Huelsman, who had eight. “If you control the glass, you control a lot of other things in the game.” …
Sophomore guard Stephen Thomas had a career-high eight points, four more than his season total. He had six in about a four-minute span in the first half. His steal and breakaway bucket gave UD a 17-14 lead with 7:37 to go, prompting Auburn coach Jeff Lebo to call a timeout.
“We played 12 guys, and if we didn’t play 12 games, we don’t win,” UD coach Brian Gregory said. “Stephen gave us a huge lift.” …
Marquette is ranked 15th nationally, and the Flyers know an 0-for-24 effort from 3-point territory won’t suffice. “We’ve got to buckle down and play UD basketball,” Marcus Johnson said. …
The Flyers had a mental lapse with 4:29 to go in regulation. Setting up in a full-court press, nobody was back deep, and Auburn threw long pass for an easy lay-up. But it’s hard to quibble with the Flyers’ D, which was as nasty as usual. They’re giving up just 48.2 point per game. …
The Flyers actually were a 3-point favorite against Auburn. UD was ranked 56th in the Sagarin college basketball ratings going into the game, Auburn 102nd.
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TweetCold-shooting Flyers pull out OT win
Marcus Johnson scored 16 points, including four free throws in the final 14.6 seconds to lift Dayton to a 60-59 overtime win over Auburn in the Chicago Invitational Challenge on Friday.
Johnson’s final pair gave UD a 60-57 lead with 4.7 seconds to go. Auburn’s DeWayne Reed was fouled by London Warren with 1.4 seconds left and made the first foul shot and tried the miss the second intentionally, but his high-arcing attempt went in.
UD threw a deep inbounds pass to run out the clock.
The Flyers (5-0) struggled from the field and free throw line. They went the final 4:14 of regulation without scoring, and neither team scored in the final 3:14.
Auburn had the last shot in regulation but missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
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TweetNext two games will be revealing for Flyers
The unbeaten Dayton Flyers will play back-to-back games against high-profile teams in Auburn tonight and Marquette on Saturday. And while a couple of wins could propel the Flyers into the national limelight for the second straight season, coach Brian Gregory is more interested in using the games as a measuring stick.
“It will be good to see where we’re at. More importantly, we’ll see where we need to get better,” Gregory said. “Our team on Nov. 28 will be much different on Dec. 28 and Jan. 28 and Feb. 28.”
The Flyers are still getting acclimated to life without Brian Roberts. Plus, they’re also in the process of morphing into a transition team after relying mostly on half-court sets last year.
“Everybody is in a different role, so there’s a newness to what we’re doing — newness to roles, newness to expectations and some newness in schemes and system,” Gregory said. “That stuff isn’t developed overnight.”
But Gregory has already learned one thing about his players: they’ve embraced his defensive philosophy.
“Our guys are buying into what we need to do to be successful,” Gregory said.
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TweetThanksgiving no holiday for the Flyers
The Flyers’ second practice of the day is underway this evening at the Sears Centre here in affluent Hoffman Estates, Ill. (about an hour west of Chicago). Their morning session at Hoffman Estates High School was intense, and they had about six hours of free time after that.
Freshman Luke Fabrizius, who lives only 15 minutes away in Arlington Heights, and junior Mickey Perry, whose home is about a half-hour away in Maywood, both went home to spend time with their families for Thanksgiving. Fabrizius took more than half the team with him.
The Sears Centre seats about 11,000 and is a multi-purpose U-shaped building. It’s the home of the Chicago Slaughter of the Continental Indoor Football League, the Chicago Storm of the Xtreme (Indoor) Soccer League and the Chicago Shamrox of the National Lacrosse League. Just guessing, but 11,000 seats probably are enough to handle the crowds for those games.
The Flyers are doing some fine-tuning before their gargantuan games with Auburn and Marquette in the next two days, running through plays and doing drill work.
I’ve been impressed with how hard they practice, how committed they are to getting better and how united they seem to be as a team. There appears to be a real camaraderie with this group and, despite intense competition for playing time, some genuine chemistry.
Maybe it’s the same at all top Division-I programs — I haven’t been around the others to know — but the Flyers sure seem to have the intangibles in place to be successful.
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TweetFlyers upbeat as they arrive for invitational
The UD basketball players were in a buoyant mood as they boarded the charter bus Wednesday afternoon for their trip to Chicago to play Auburn and Marquette — and why not? That thorough thrashing of Mercer at UD Arena had to give the team a jolt of confidence.
The games will be played Friday and Saturday at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Ill., about an hour west of Chicago. The team watched a couple of movies on the six-hour bus trip, including “Iron Man” with Robert Downey Jr. (rent it).
The Flyers will practice twice Thursday — going at 9 a.m. at Hoffman Estates High School and 5:30 p.m. at the Sears Centre. The players will have the afternoon free, and some will get with family members who made the trip and spend Thanksgiving together.
I ran into Mercer coach Bob Hoffman Wednesday night. The Flyers and Mercer are both staying at the swank Marriott Chicago Northwest.
When I told him I was with the Dayton party, he assumed I was employed by UD and said, “I’m sorry we couldn’t have given you guys a better game. Your team plays hard — hard.”
He walked away before I could tell him I’m just a lowly scribe. But the point is, that’s about as good a compliment as any squad can get.
By the way, the Flyers will be part of evening double-headers both days. They’ll meet Auburn at 6 p.m. Friday (Dayton time), followed by Marquette vs. Northern Iowa.
On Saturday, Auburn and Northern Iowa meet at 5:30, followed by UD and Marquette at 8 p.m.
There also will be afternoon double-headers both days. Ticket packages run from $65.00 to $110.00 each day. For info, call the Sears Centre at 1-888-732-7784.
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TweetFlyers improving, but Auburn, Marquette up next
Dayton coach Brian Gregory summed up his team’s 71-53 win over Mercer by complimenting opposing coach Bob Hoffman, praising the Bears for their hard-nosed play and commending his own team for taking another step in the quest toward reaching its potential.
“That was just what we needed,” Gregory said of the confidence-building victory.
The Flyers’ schedule has been set up perfectly for a team that’s needed to reinvent itself after the departure of dominating guard Brian Roberts. Each opponent has been better than the previous one, and the Flyers are as prepared as they could expect to be for the two games on their non-conference schedule that provide an opportunity to gain national attention: Auburn and Marquette in Chicago.
“The team is focused. We’re ready,” point guard Rob Lowery said. “We had so much of a challenge because we had so many new faces in the program. We’ve been building our chemistry and it’s becoming so good. We’ve learned how to settle down.
“It’s going to be different people scoring every night. There’s no selfishness on this team. I just think that’s real big.”
The Flyers still have much work ahead — Gregory was quick to point that out — but that lopsided win over Mercer was a promising sign, showing that perhaps the first year in the post-Roberts era might be better than many folks thought.
These next two games in Chicago should provide more answers. Against Auburn and especially Marquette, that chemistry, unselfishness and poise that Lowery talks about will certainly be put to the test.
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TweetFlyers build lead, hold on
Dayton built a 26-point first-half lead and held on for a 71-53 victory over Mercer on Tuesday.
The Flyers (4-0), who led by 22 at halftime, were torrid at the start, but they ran into a cold spell after the break. The Bears (3-2) cut the deficit to 12 with 6:05 to go but could get no closer.
Chris Wright had 16 points, Charles Little 11 and Marcus Johnson 10 for the Flyers.
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TweetA-10 lands network deal for tourney championship
Score one for new Atlantic 10 Commissioner Bernadette McGlade.
The A-10 announced today that its tournament championship will be broadcast nationally by CBS-TV at 1 p.m. on Selection Sunday beginning next season. Getting their game on an over-the-air network is a huge coup for McGlade and the A-10 and can’t help but raise the profile of the league.
“We are extremely excited to partner with CBS Sports for our men’s basketball championship,” McGlade said in a statement. “To have our champion crowned on the most exciting day of the college basketball season — Selection Sunday — speaks volumes to the respect that the Atlantic 10 has on a national level. Our student-athletes, coaches, and administrators will benefit greatly.”
The A-10 also announced a return to its previous tourney format of playing opening round games at campus sites in 2010. The first four seeds get byes into the quarterfinals at a site to be announced this winter and play against the winners of first-round games.
That’s a change from the last five years and won’t be popular with the A-10 bottom-feeders, who want the full postseason tourney experience by going to Atlantic City or wherever the event is held. But attendance figures didn’t support that format.
“Allowing four institutions to host an opening round championship game will generate enthusiasm throughout the footprint of the Atlantic 10,” McGlade said.
“This hybrid format presents the best of all worlds: allowing teams to host mid-week opening round games, which are always an attendance challenge, and subsequently advancing all to a common championship site on a traditional weekend schedule of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. It has the potential to benefit the teams, the fans, the media opportunities, and the overall excitement surrounding the event.”
The 2010 league tourney will begin on Tuesday, Mar. 9, with opening-round play and will continue on Friday with four quarterfinal games. The semifinals will be played Saturday afternoon and the final Sunday.
The 2009 tourney will begin Wednesday, Mar. 11, at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The final will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2.
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TweetLittle, others need to step up
Even though Dayton is 3-0 and is coming off a 40-point win, it’s been hard to get a read on this team. But we’ll know much more after tonight.
The Flyers host Mercer, which, I’m sure you’ve heard by now, whipped Auburn and Alabama on the road and nearly knocked off Georgia Tech at home. The Bears even received a vote this week in the AP Top 25 poll.
Suffice it to say the Flyers will have to play much sharper than they have so far to come out victorious, beginning with their point guard play. While London Warren had a solid outing Sunday against Bethune-Cookman (five assists, three steals, one turnover), back-up Rob Lowery digressed (two points on 1-for-6 shooting with four assists and four turnovers).
And the Flyers also will need big-time production from the frontcourt. Center Kurt Huelsman had seven rebounds against B-C but tallied just two points on 1-for-7 shooting. And though Charles Little is coming off a 10-point night, he’s capable of much more.
The 6-foot-6 senior was a beast at times as a sophomore. He had 28 points and 10 rebounds against Xavier, 21 and 10 against UMass and 21 and nine against Duquesne. Where did that player go?
A motivated Charles Little could be a double-double guy every night. And for the Flyers to beat Mercer or anybody else of note this season, they’ll need him to develop a warrior’s mentality to go with that ample athletic ability.
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TweetFlyer basketball: The Week Ahead
Games: Tuesday vs. Mercer, 7:30 p.m.; Friday vs. Auburn, 6 p.m.; Saturday vs. Marquette 8 p.m.
Scouting Mercer: The Bears are off to a fast start under first-year coach Bob Hoffman, knocking off Alabama, 72-69, and Auburn, 78-74, on the road and giving Georgia Tech a scare at home before losing, 82-76, in overtime.
They return three of their top five scorers from last year’s squad, which went 11-19 overall and 6-10 in the Atlantic Sun.
Hoffman had a 400-171 record at Texas-Pan American and Oklahoma Baptist. He replaced Mark Slonaker, who was fired after 11 seasons.
Scouting Auburn: The Tigers finished 14-16 last year and improved to 2-1 this season after rallying from a 15-point halftime deficit to beat visiting George Washington, 83-71, on Saturday.
Auburn was picked to finish between fourth and sixth in the SEC West Division in various preseason polls. Korvotney Barber, a 6-7 senior forward, is a preseason third-team all-league pick.
Scouting Marquette: Tom Crean left a plenty of talent for new coach Buzz Williams. The 17th-ranked Golden Eagles are 3-0 after knocking off Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 100-80, on Saturday.
Marquette, which has a trio of dynamic guards in Jerel McNeal, Dominic James and Wesley Mathews, was picked to finish sixth in the mighty Big East.
Facts, figures: After getting out-rebounded by 10 in their opener, the Flyers are back to asserting their dominance on the boards. They had a 39-28 advantage in a 78-38 win over Bethune-Cookman on Sunday.
“We’re doing a little better job on the glass, but I know what’s coming down the turn,” UD coach Brian Gregory said. “We’ve got to do a better job on the defensive backboards. We’re doing a good job on the offensive backboards because we can use our athleticism and tip and tap balls and keep them alive. On defense, you need to be a little more physical and you need to rebound with a little more toughness.”
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TweetFlyers coast past Bethune-Cookman
Marcus Johnson had 16 points, Chris Johnson 14 and Charles Little 10 to lead Dayton to a 78-38 win over visiting Bethune-Cookman in the first game of the Chicago Invitational Challenge at UD Arena on Sunday.
The Flyers raced to a 19-4 lead in the first eight minutes and a 38-19 edge at halftime and were never threatened.
Freshman Clifford Reed led the Wildcats (1-2) with 19 points.
UD (3-0) hosts Mercer (3-1) at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
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TweetWright makes good on promise
Chris Wright took personal responsibility for the Flyers’ shortcomings on the boards in the season opener against Wofford. They had 10 fewer rebounds than their guests, and it wasn’t like the Terriers were loaded with size or leapers.
The sophomore forward, who had just four rebounds in 30 minutes, promised that UD would have a better showing against Delaware State.
You’ve gotta love a guy who’s willing to be held accountable.
“I said what I said because I believe in this team. I believe we can be one of the best rebounding teams in the nation,” Wright said. “We’re athletic and we have size. If we crash the boards, I don’t think anyone can stop us.”
I don’t know if the Flyers can be THAT good, but they’re certainly capable of being one of the Atlantic 10’s top rebounding teams. They were second in the league in rebound margin last season at plus-4.9.
And the flexed their considerable muscle against Delaware State, hauling in 22 offensive rebounds and finishing with a 41-29 advantage on the boards in the 62-42 victory Wednesday. Wright and Kurt Huelsman led UD with seven rebounds apiece.
With Brian Roberts gone, the Flyers may have trouble generating consistent offense this season — unless those promising freshmen mature in a hurry. They’re going to need second-chance points (they had 19 against Delaware State) and generate offense with their defense (they forced 25 turnovers against the Hornets, leading to 30 points).
The Flyers had 15 steals, two short of the school record.
“We did it with very contained pressure, which is good,” Gregory said of the thievery. “We didn’t gamble a lot. If you force 25 turnovers and hold a team under 40 percent from the field (the Hornets shot 36.6 percent), that’s a tremendous defensive effort.”
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TweetTraffic no problem for at least some fans
After experiencing long delays on Interstate-75 for the Dayton’s season-opener Sunday, Flyer fans seemed to have had a much easier time finding their way to UD Arena for the Delaware State game on Wednesday.
“It was a lot better than it was Sunday,” said Qasim Rizvi of Vandalia. “It was still backed up, but we didn’t wait that long, only maybe two minutes.”
The Stewart St. bridge is closed this year, blocking off a popular access to the arena. To limit congestion on the interstate, UD has encouraged fans to take the Washington St. bridge about two miles away in downtown Dayton or take Dryden Rd. to Nicholas Rd., which turns into Edwin C. Moses Blvd. as it weaves toward the arena.
Dave Seubert of Bellbrook picked up his parents in Oakwood and drove toward downtown, going west on Route 35 and then south on I-75.
They encountered only about a five-minute back-up at the Edwin C. Moses exit.
“I honestly think it went quicker than when the Stewart St. bridge was open,” Seubert said. “We used to always take Stewart St. across (the Great Miami River) and if you didn’t plan it just right, it was terrible.”
The Dayton Daily News would like to hear what other fans experienced on their way to the first two games. Was traffic a problem or not really an issue?
Contact Doug Harris at (937) 225-2125 or at dharris@DaytonDailyNews.com
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TweetFlyers blast Delaware State
Chris Wright scored 18 points and had seven rebounds to lead Dayton to a 62-42 win over visiting Delaware State before 11,906 fans Wednesday.
The Flyers (2-0) led by eight at halftime and then blew the game open with a flurry of fastbreak baskets while building up a 28-point lead at one point.
Delaware State (1-3) plays at Ohio State on Thursday night.
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TweetFlyers not looking past Delaware State
Dayton has a game tonight against Delaware State, which may not be a foe that gets the fans stirred up but, as Wofford proved Sunday, could certainly be a handful for the Flyers.
UD coach Brian Gregory was asked whether his team might have trouble getting fired up for those no-name opponents, given the Flyers’ struggles in a 52-49 win over the Terriers. He promptly answered, “Absolutely not.”
He insisted he had no problem with his team’s intensity level in the opener, just its execution. And he pointed out that the players by now should understand the balance in college basketball and mentioned Kentucky (a 111-103 loser to VMI in its season-opener), Alabama (which dropped a 72-69 decision to Mercer) and Utah (which fell in its home opener to, no lie, Southwest Baptist 80-79).
As point guard Rob Lowery put it after that Wofford squeaker, “You can’t go to sleep on no Division-I team.”
Chris Wright, UD’s star forward, mentioned the difficulty going against lightly regarded opponents not because of complacency, but because of the passion they bring.
“They come in here jacked up and ready to play,” he said. “Schools like that, their guys feel like they should be in the shoes we are, whether it’s Dayton or Xavier or Michigan State. When you play those types of schools in your house, they want to prove the point that they should be in your shoes, and you should be where they are.”
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TweetFlyers will need help from freshmen
Dayton wanted to unveil its new uptempo style in the season-opener against Wofford on Sunday, but the methodical pace of the visitors and UD’s own failings on the defensive glass kept that from happening.
I think the Flyers need to brace themselves for more slow-down tactics from opponents, at least in the non-conference schedule. An up-and-down game favors UD because of its athleticism, and coaches are too smart not to figure that out.
But the Flyers still have to be better than they were on offense in the 52-49 victory, even if they get mired in a low-possession game — and I think they will be.
Why? Well, for starters, the freshmen are much more skilled than they showed in their first official outing.
I watched Chris Johnson, Luke Fabrizius and Paul Williams during summer pick-up games, during preseason practice and in two exhibitions, and the all looked like they’re ready to contribute immediately. Against Wofford, though, they were obviously nervous and finished 0-for-3 from the field while playing a combined 12 minutes.
Johnson air-balled a 3-pointer from the corner. Fabrizius had two turnovers in two minutes. Yep, pretty ugly. But I believe that was an aberration.
Junior Marcus Johnson and sophomore Chris Wright are poised for terrific seasons, but they can’t carry the load by themselves. The Flyers probably are going to need production from the newcomers, and I think they’ll get it.
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TweetUD soccer team to face Illinois-Chicago
The Dayton men’s soccer team will play at Illinois-Chicago in the first round of the NCAA tournament at 8 p.m. Friday. The winner will advance to play against Michigan State, which has a first-round bye.
UIC is 12-3-4, while the Flyers are 15-4-2. UD earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by winning the Atlantic 10 tourney on Sunday.
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TweetThe Week Ahead: UD basketball
Schedule: Wednesday vs. Delaware State, 7:30 p.m.; Sunday vs. Bethune-Cookman, 2 p.m.
Scouting Delaware State: After three straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference titles, including a tourney crown in 2005, the Hornets fell to 14-16 last season and graduated all-league first-teamer Roy Bright.
Scouting Bethune-Cookman: Another MEAC team. The Wildcats went 11-21 last season and have 10 new players on the roster.
Facts, figures: Trevor Welcher, a 5-11 guard, is averaging 27.5 points in two games for Delaware State (1-1). … Sophomore Alexander Starling had 18 points to lead four double-figure scorers in Bethune-Cookman’s 70-64 season-opening win over Edward Waters College.
Although its starting lineup was nearly two inches taller per man, UD was out-rebounded by 10 against Wofford, giving up 11 offensive boards in the 52-49 win. … Marcus Johnson and Chris Wright were a combined 14-of-23 from the field. The rest of the Flyers were 5-for-23. …
The UD freshmen — Chris Johnson, Paul Williams and Luke Fabrizius — displayed first-game jitters. They were 0-for-3 from the field while playing a collective 12 minutes. The slick-shooting Johnson air-balled a 3-pointer. Fabrizius had two turnovers in two minutes.
The other newcomer, junior-college transfer Rob Lowery, missed his first five shots but scored four crucial points in the final 48 seconds and had five assists with one turnover. …
UD coach Brian Gregory is closing in on his 100th career win with a 99-60 record. … The Flyers had 17 transition points in the slow-down affair but need to control the glass if they’re really serious about being an up-tempo team.
Quote, unquote “I’m really concerned only about our defensive rebounding,” Gregory said. “You can’t defend as well as we did and give them second chances, especially a team that’s going to hold the ball for 30 seconds.”
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TweetFlyers survive scare from Wofford
Chris Wright and Marcus Johnson had 17 points apiece to lead Dayton to a 52-49 season-opening victory over scrappy Wofford on Sunday night.
With the scored tied at 44-all, Marcus Johnson stole a pass and sped to a dunk that gave UD a two-point edge with 3:03 to go.
Chris Wright then made a steal and was fouled on a break-away. He made one of two free throws with 2:40 left.
With UD leading by three at 1:44, Kurt Huelsman went to the line for a one-and-one. He missed the first, but Wofford was called for a lane violation. He connected on the mulligan but missed the second, keeping the lead at four.
Wofford scored on an inside bucket, but Rob Lowery answered with a 15-foot jumper with 48 secconds to go to push the lead back to four.
After the Terriers made a free throw to cut the deficit to 50-47, Lowery went to the line for a one-and-one with 15.1 seconds left. He calmly swished both to seal the victory.
The Flyers had almost as many turnovers as points in the first 11:15 while falling behind, 19-11. But their defense kept them in the game.
Johnson capped a 14-5 run to give the Flyers their first lead at 25-24 with three minutes to go in the first half. Wright hit a fade-away jumper to give them a 27-26 halftime edge. He had 10 points and Johnson eight in the first 20 minutes.
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TweetGregory finding ways to lock up local talent
With the signing of Centerville’s Matt Kavanaugh, Dayton can turn its attention to the 2010-11 (junior) class and with the hopes of keeping the talent pipeline flowing.
The Flyers already have one commitment in coveted point guard Juwan Staten of Thurgood Marshall and have four more scholarships to give.
One of those is reserved, of course, for Jefferson’s Adreian Payne, and insiders say UD has a good shot of landing the 6-9 center even though he’s being heavily recruited by the likes of Ohio State and Florida.
Anybody who’s ever coached for the Flyers has tried to lock up local talent like Brian Gregory is doing, but one of the reasons the sixth-year coach is having success is because he’s so engaging as a person and he’s gone out of his way to build relationships within the local basketball community.
Another key element — and this can’t possibly be overstated — was getting a commitment three years ago from Trotwood-Madison star Chris Wright, a top-50 national recruit. That made the Flyers a fashionable pick for other standouts.
“We had to lose a couple first. I recruited Derrick Brown really hard,” Gregory said of the former Chaminade-Julienne star who went to Xavier. “But what Chris did is now you can turn around and say, hey, obviously, they’ve got something going on pretty good there.
“Chris is a great ambassador for our program. Everyone obviously knows him as a player, but once you spend time with him, players want to be around him.”
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TweetFlyers to make 17 appearances on TV
The University of Dayton men’s basketball team will have 17 of their 31 regular-season games televised this season, including 14 on WHIO-TV.
Nine of the 17 broadcasts will be road games. The school agreed to share some of the costs with WHIO to air those games, although financial details are still being worked out.
The first televised game will be against Marquette on Nov. 29 on Channel 7.
The Flyers had 13 televised games each of the last two years. WHIO broadcast 11 last season.
“They’ve stepped in to help us offset some of the cost, which is really terrific,” WHIO-TV vice president and general manager Harry Delaney said of UD. “It gave us a chance to expand the schedule.”
UD associate athletics director Tim Wabler, who will replace Ted Kissell as AD on Jan. 1, said the school wanted to give the program more exposure locally and allow fans who regularly attend games to see the Flyers play more away from UD Arena.
“This will be the first time we’ve ever had to invest (financially) in order to bring games back, but we thought it was important for our fans,” he said.
Ratings for UD games are strong. The Flyers typically draw a 6.7 rating with an 11 share, which Delaney termed “terrific” for local sports programming.
“I sold NBA basketball in an NBA market, and it would get a household rating of four to five,” Delaney said. “This speaks to the Dayton Flyers’ enormous fan base and the loyalists they have here.”
Two UD games against Xavier will be shown on either ESPN or ESPN2. The Flyers’ home game with Saint Louis will be televised nationally by CBS College Sports (formerly CSTV).
All UD home games not televised nationally can still be seen for free on the school’s Web site at www.daytonflyers.com.
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TweetFlyers land local prize in Kavanaugh
Centerville senior center Matt Kavanaugh signed a national letter-of-intent with Dayton today, which not only gives the Flyers a quality big man but also keeps their streak alive of keeping top talent at home.
It started with Trotwood-Madison’s Chris Wright in 2007-08, followed by Dunbar’s Josh Benson (2008-09) and now Kavanaugh (2009-10). Thurgood Marshall’s Juwan Staten, who is just a junior this year, has already committed to the Flyers, too.
“It’s the third straight year, in my opinion, that the best player in the Dayton area has signed to play for the Flyers,” UD coach Brian Gregory said. “You look at all the great Flyer teams of the past, and we’ve always had players from our own backyard playing for those teams. Matt will be another example of that.
“He’s not only an outstanding player, but a high-character kid. He comes from a great family and a program I have an unbelievable amount of respect for.”
With Josh Benson likely redshirting this year and Kavanaugh coming on board next season, the Flyers could have a potent inside one-two punch with that duo in a couple of years.
The Flyers are still hoping to land one more local prize in the 2010-11 class in Jefferson’s Adreian Payne, a mobile 6-foot-10 center with oodles of potential.
Centerville coach Jim Staley said Kavanaugh, who was 6-foot-2 as a freshman, was measured at 6-9 in stocking feet this season. He played in the backcourt while coming up through the youth ranks and still has those perimeter skills.
Kavanaugh, who averaged 20.3 points and 10 rebounds as a junior, appears to still be growing. He was measured at 6-foot-8 1/4 last year.
“I think he can play inside and out (in college),” Staley said. “I think his biggest strengths are he’s strong, he runs very well and he’s got good hands.
“He can handle the ball. We use him to beat presses all the time. If (opponents) are big enough, they’re not going to be quick enough to stay with him.”
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TweetThis Flyer team still a mystery
I’ve watched the Flyers’ two exhibition games and an intrasquad scrimmage this year and yet I still can’t get a good read on this team.
Will they be better than last year? Beats me.
Are they good enough to finish third in the Atlantic 10 like the preseason polls say? No idea.
Can they at least win 20 games and reach the postseason? Your guess is as good as mine.
They seem to lack consistent scorers and make sloppy ball-handling mistakes. And they’ll probably be depending heavily on freshmen, which isn’t ideal.
But they’re athletic, have a deep bench and are relentless on defense. And they also appear to have great chemistry, which can carry a team a long way.
“We might be a little better defensively right now than last year,” UD coach Brian Gregory said after the 67-59 exhibition win over Gannon on Tuesday.
“I know one thing — and I’ll keep saying it — this team is going to have a steady increase of improvement throughout the year if they keep working the way they’re working and keep buying into what we’re trying to do. It’s a team that could be really good at the end of the year.”
I have no doubts the Flyers will keep getting better — that’s what UD teams do — but they’ll need to take care of business starting Sunday against Wofford so they have something to play for when they reach their peak in March.
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TweetUD freshmen impressive so far
The Flyers haven’t even gotten through the exhibition part of their schedule, but it’s not too early to make an assessment of the freshman class: It’s a good one.
The 6-foot-8 Luke Fabrizius may be built like a Q-tip, but he can stroke it and he’s not afraid to let it fly. Opponents will always have to account for him when he’s in the game.
I like Chris Johnson, the Columbus Brookhaven product. I had a sports-writing buddy from Columbus tell me about him last year, guaranteeing that “C.J.” would start for the Flyers. I’m not so sure about that, but he’s going to play starter-like minutes.
Although I haven’t see much of Paul Williams, he’s got shooting range and is known as a winner — and that’s a combination of traits any coach would take.
And junior-college transfer Rob Lowery shows plenty of promise and will likely rotate with London Warren at the point-guard spot.
Here’s what Charles Little, the team’s lone senior, had to say about the freshmen:
“Luke can shoot it from half court if he wanted to. I hate guarding him. It’s miserable. Paul has been banged up, but he’s been working his way back to practice. And he’s really impressed me with his defense and what he brings to the table.
“I didn’t know CJ could shoot like that. And he has a knack for slashing and getting to the basket. And Josh (Benson) was really coming along before he got hurt.”
The freshmen will get another chance to show what they can do in an exhibition against Gannon tonight. Although we should be careful about going overboard with rookie players before they’ve been tested in actual game situations, this group looks to be everything Flyer fans had hoped for and more.
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TweetTE Bergfeld undergoes ankle surgery
Dayton senior tight end Bart Bergfeld underwent surgery today to repair a dislocated left ankle suffered in the Butler game Saturday, ending his season.
Bergfeld had two receptions for 26 yards against the Bulldogs and had 21 catches this year, tied for third on the team.
In other UD football news:
QB Jeff Pechan was named Pioneer Football League offensive player of the week after leading the Flyers to a 28-21 overtime win against the Bulldogs.
The redshirt freshman was 23-of-42 passing for 242 yards with two TDs and no interceptions. He also ran 15 times for 53 yards and a TD.
“I was nervous all week in practice, just in anticipation of the game,” Pechan said. “But I was confident out there (Saturday), and my teammates were confident in me, which helped.”
Pechan replaced Rob Florian, who fractured a bone in his right thumb against San Diego on Nov. 1 and is expected to be sidelined again when the Flyers host Morehead State on Saturday.
Florian, who is right-handed, had won the previous two PFL offensive player of the week honors.
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TweetWarren out with ankle injury
Dayton starting point guard London Warren will miss Tuesday’s exhibition game against Division II Gannon because of a sprained ankle.
The 6-foot-1 junior limped to the bench with less than six minutes to go in a 98-73 win over Division III Capital last week. He finished with 11 points, six assists and just one turnover while playing 15 minutes.
UD coach Brian Gregory, meeting with the media Monday, said he’s confident Warren will be ready for the season-opener against Wofford on Sunday night.
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TweetPoint guards off to good start
Dayton’s Rob Lowery was leading a fastbreak against Capital on Thursday and spotted center Kurt Huelsman ahead of the pack, but the looping pass was too long and ended up going out of bounds.
Instead of getting chewed out, though, the new point guard received some positive reinforcement from coach Brian Gregory.
“Rob’s over-the-top pass to Kurt Huelsman, that’s fine with me,” Gregory said. “He got four of those (completed for fastbreak baskets) and turned the ball over once.
“Our big guys are running, and if they don’t get that pass thrown to them once in a while, they’re going to stop running.”
The point-guard tandem of Lowery and London Warren looked promising in the exhibition win, albeit against Division III competition. The two combined for 20 points and nine assists with just three turnovers.
“Every turnover any of them had occurred in the open court. That’s always a positive,” Gregory said. “If you push the ball, you’re going to turn it over.”
The point-guard position will be closely watched this season since much of the Flyers’ success will depend on how well Warren and Lowery perform.
So far, so good.
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TweetFlyers play faster, but lack polish
Dayton had 23 assists and just nine turnovers in its 98-73 exhibition victory against Capital on Thursday — and that ratio will win a lot of games — but the offense still wasn’t quite as crisp as it needs to be.
The Flyers are evolving into a transition team after operating mostly out of half-court sets last year, and I thought they looked a little disjointed at times.
UD coach Brian Gregory agreed.
“I was a little disappointed in the first half,” Gregory said. “I thought we left about 10 points out there in the open court. We’d have a two-on-one or three-on-two and make a bad decision. We didn’t turn the ball over, but the pass led to a bad shot.”
The Flyers are committed to pushing the pace and applying endline-to-endline, man-to-man pressure this season, and that seems like a sound move because of their deep bench and team-wide athleticism.
Capital coach Damon Goodwin, a former UD star, certainly was impressed with the Flyers’ size and speed.
“Almost every year, we’ve played a Division I team, and they’re by far the most athletic team we’ve played,” said Goodwin, who is now in his 15th season.
“I don’t see a lot of Division I teams, but I think their season depends on how well they shoot the ball. If they shoot it, they’re going to be tough — because they’re hard to keep out of the lane.”
The Flyers still have time to work out some kinks. They play Division II Gannon on Tuesday before their season-opener against Wofford on Nov. 16.
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TweetFlyers treating exhibition like regular game
Although Dayton’s game against Capital tonight is just an exhibition, coach Brian Gregory is taking his team through its normal pre-game routine.
“We’ll have a scouting report and film session,” he said. “We’ll do everything we’d do in a real game. With all our new guys, there’s a learning process that goes on there.”
Although the Crusaders toil in the Division-III ranks, Gregory expects coach Damon Goodwin’s team to be competitive.
“Captial had a great year last year with Damon at the helm,” Gregory said. “He’s just a tremendous coach.
“It will be a nice challenge for us to start it off, get on our uniforms, play in front of a crowd and see how some of the things we’ve been working on work in a real game.”
One difference between the Capital exhibition and the Flyers’ opener on Nov. 16 against Wofford, though, is that Gregory will give everyone ample playing time while not being concerned as much with the outcome, meaning fans will get an extended look at the the team’s solid new recruits.
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TweetFlyers will miss more than just Roberts
Jimmy Binnie and Andres Sandoval may have had relatively forgettable careers as UD basketball players, but coach Brian Gregory believes fans may have underestimated what that duo brought to the team.
Binnie started all 34 games and averaged 6.0 points last season, makng the second-most 3-pointers on the team with 40 (shooting 35.1 percent). And he battled fiercely on defense while being pitted against much taller players at the power forward spot.
Sandoval made 23 starts last year and averaged 6.4 points. And while the 6-4 guard was maddeningly inconsistent, he occasionally produced some late-game heroics to help the Flyers pull out wins.
“We wouldn’t have won 23 games and be ranked as high as 14th in the country if those two guys didn’t have the senior years they did,” Gregory said. “There are no small roles when it comes to building a team that’s successful. Those two guys maybe statistically or point-wise may not have garnered the attention Brian Roberts did, but they had every bit as big a role in the foundation of the team.”
What do you say, Flyer Faithful? Will Binnie and Sandoval be missed?
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TweetFlyers grab key PFL win
The University of Dayton had to overcome a huge hole but ripped off 24 unanswered points for a 30-22 victory Saturday night at San Diego to take sole possession of first place in the Pioneer Football League.
The Flyers (8-1, 5-0 PFL) were facing a 22-6 deficit after quarterback Rob Florian threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown, but the fifth-year senior more than made up for his gaffe.
He led the Flyers on a two-minute drill to finish the first half with a touchdown, cutting the margin to 22-13, and he caught fire in the second half. He finished 34-of-43 passing for 353 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions as UD snapped San Diego’s 28-game home winning streak.
Florian tied the school record for completions set last year by Kevin Hoyng against Albany.
“He’s a leader,” UD coach Rick Chamberlin said. “He gets the job done. He’s not flashy — I can’t believe he had 34 completions — but he does the job and the kids believe in him.”
Florian was kicking himself for that pick-six late in the first half.
“I just forced it,” Florian said. “I’ve got to give the guy credit. He really made a great break on it, and he did a great job scoring. But I just said, ‘All right, don’t force things.’ And I think we really grew as an offense.”
Florian was 19-of-23 passing for 209 yards in the second half, including 8-for-8 on the scoring drive that gave UD the lead for good with 4:04 left in the third quarter.
Justin Millio finished with 12 catches for 101 yards. The school record for receptions is 14.
Steve McDonald led the defense with nine tackles, including three for loss.
“It’s just unreal,” defensive lineman Sean Heenan said of the win. “We weren’t treating this game with any extra emphasis. But, obviously, in the back of our minds, there was the 28-game winning streak, and they’re probably our biggest rivals. It feels great to come out with a win.”
The Flyers are the only unbeaten team in the PFL with three games to go. Jacksonville (6-3, 4-1) handed Butler (6-2, 3-1) its first loss Saturday.
San Diego (6-2, 4-2 PFL), the preseason conference favorite, likely fell out of the league race with the defeat.
UD plays Butler in Indianapolis on Saturday.
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