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Monday, December 21, 2009
Short-handed Flyers impressive in win
Paul Williams, who had been averaging 23 minutes per game, played 33. Chris Wright, who had been logging 27, tacked on an extra four. And Mickey Perry, an 18-minute guy, was on the floor for 30.
Dayton was down to eight players from its customary 11 because of injuries, and Williams, for one, wasn’t thrilled about being needed so much — for good reason.
“I don’t like it because my teammates weren’t there,” he said. “I want them back as quick as possible so we can all be out there competing.”
UD fans certainly would say “Amen” to that.
The Flyers pulled out a 65-49 win over Appalachian State, and it was one of their better showings of the season. With senior point guard London Warren dogged by foul trouble, they were often down to just seven players against a foe who could do some damage in the Southern Conference this season.
They prevailed despite having to do battle without three of their top four scorers — Chris Johnson (concussion), Marcus Johnson (sprained foot) and Luke Fabrizius (sprained knee).
With the Flyers getting four days off for Christmas break, I’ve seen a lot of promising signs about this team.
After shooting just 38.5 percent from the field and 58.3 from the foul line last season, senior center Kurt Huelsman is flashing more confidence than he ever has before. He had eight points against the Mountaineers, making 4-of-6 shots.
He’s shooting 59.4 percent from the field and 78.6 from the foul line.
Devin Searcy, another 6-10 post, gives the Flyers a solid duo on the blocks.
Huelsman, in fact, has been playing with a strained calf. The medical staff said he can’t hurt it any more by playing, and that he just has to tape it up and endure the pain.
But he’s done more than just persevere, which is why coach Brian Gregory, a staunch Huelsman supporter, said, “If anybody questions him, they have to go through me.”
I also liked how Perry, Williams and Josh Benson didn’t cower over getting primary roles because of the injury situation. They played confidently. And Appalachian State was good enough to have left UD Arena with a win if that trio didn’t stand up to the challenge.
The Flyers probably will still be short-handed for the Boston University game Dec. 29. There’s a chance they could have everybody back for the Jan. 1 showdown with undefeated New Mexico in Albuquerque.
But this was a solid win by a team that’s starting to mesh well together. And the only thing Williams and others in the program want for Christmas is for those injured players to be quick healers.
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Flyers win seventh in a row
(Blog by Doug Harris)
Mickey Perry scored 15 points, Chris Wright 14 and Paul Williams 10 as the University of Dayton beat Appalachian State 65-49 in men’s basketball Monday, Dec. 21.
The Flyers improved to 9-2 with their seventh straight win. Appalachian State is 7-5.
