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Gregory knows Villanova will be huge test
SAN JUAN — Dayton coach Brian Gregory realizes 22 turnovers and 43-percent shooting — his team’s stat line in a first-round win over Georgia Tech — probably won’t be sufficient against Villanova on Friday.
The fifth-ranked Wildcats (3-0) rallied for a 69-68 win over George Mason today. They hit two gigantic 3-pointers — the second a game-winner by forward Isaiah Armwood with 17 seconds left. Armwood is an unlikely hero. He played just four minutes, and it was his only shot of the game
Villanova finished 30-8 and reached the Final Four last year.
“Obviously it’s a great opportunity to play Villanova, one year removed from the Final Four,” Gregory said. “I’ve known Jay Wright since I was a college player, and I just have an unbelievable amount of respect for him and the program he’s built there.”
The Flyers’ 63-59 win over Georgia Tech gives them a 7-2 record against BCS teams the last three years, but they haven’t beaten a Top 5 foe since knocking off DePaul on Ed Young’s famous shot in 1984.
Despite the sometimes sloppy play against the Yellow Jackets, Gregory couldn’t criticize his team’s intensity.
“I’m not satisfied with where we are at all,” he said. “At times we played ugly. But we really do play hard. I get on the guys sometimes when we don’t execute like we can, but you can never fault our effort. And when you have talented guys who are good guys who play like that, you’re going to be successful.”
Read more about the tournament:
Flyers’ Big 2 have been nonfactors so far
Sophomores deliver for Flyers against Georgia Tech
Follow the Flyers against Villinova
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Comments
By Jeff
November 20, 2009 2:00 AM | Link to this
Nova’s guards will dominate. Warren is a turnover machine. Sorry Flyers, you’re gonna be 1-1. but way to beat a mediocore G. tech team that will finish no better than 5’th in the ACC
By FlyerFaithful
November 20, 2009 5:24 AM | Link to this
These haters are everywhere, aren’t they? Thanks for your opinion, Jeff. Now throw in the term “mid-major” to make yourself look really smart. Look for UD to exploit its height advantage on Villanova early to pound the ball inside with CW, Devin and Kurt, which will open up things from outside for Paul, Luke, and CJ. The depth of UD will wear Villanova out. Also look for Marcus to bounce back with a big game.
By Doug
November 20, 2009 6:42 AM | Link to this
Jeff, GT has 3 Parade All-Americans on their team and was picked to finish 3rd or 4th in the ACC this year. I believe Nova doesnt go as deep, we could wear them down
By Big Least Dominance
November 20, 2009 6:52 AM | Link to this
Jeff, Solid statements. Nova will be added to the list of Big Least conquests since 2006. Louisville Pittsburgh Louisville Marquetts West Virginia These guys are 5-0 against the Big Least. Know your facts.
By UD'87
November 20, 2009 7:21 AM | Link to this
A village somewhere is missing its idiot. Go home Jeff. G-tech added one of the top recruits in the nation in Derrick Favors and is sleeper in the ACC that can push UNC & Duke for the title if their young talent can mesh. A good win for UD; now go get Nova! BTW Jeff, a loss would make UD 2-1. Moron.
By Amy Katz
November 20, 2009 7:37 AM | Link to this
Jeff - London has better than a 2:1 assist to TO ratio; you know that they say: better for everyone to think you’re a fool rather than opening your mouth and proving it
By Steve
November 20, 2009 8:16 AM | Link to this
Very good win. The A10 could use all of them ugly or not so we can get more than 1-2 teams in the tourney.
By troll...jeff
November 20, 2009 8:37 AM | Link to this
Jeff is a troll, who probably supports another team in town London, will dominate with his effort..again Amy knows her stuff
By Phil '83
November 20, 2009 8:44 AM | Link to this
Hey Jeff — the fool, the moron, the troll, and finally village idiot … What do you expect when after game two you don’t even know their record? Go ahead and take to pacifier back to bed with you.
By GemCity
November 20, 2009 8:50 AM | Link to this
Didn’t we beat #3 Maryland in the Maui Tournament in 2000? I know we beat #16 UConn and #12 Kentucky that year. I thought Maryland was a top 5 team that year. What was Pitt ranked when we beat them? I’m looking forward to today’s game, our last two games against Nova were absolute battles. Both were decided by last second shots.
By John
November 20, 2009 9:06 AM | Link to this
Hey Jeff, Wrong opinion. ESPN and ACC Coaches have GTech finishing 2nd in the ACC. By the way, Nova is down 2 players with one being the 2nd best player on the team. You must be a Raider Fan
By WTF?
November 20, 2009 9:08 AM | Link to this
Who cares what Jeff or any of the other trouble making, bigmouth, ignorant OSU or WSU fans say about UD? We put up two quality wins over Creighton and Ga Tech to come off a great season last year. UD’s guys should be proud of themselves for EARNING the right to play Nova, and hopefully they show up ready to outwork them. Congrats UD!
By tds70
November 20, 2009 9:25 AM | Link to this
Lighten up folks. Lets give Jeff a break. I suspect he means 1-1 in the tournament, GT is young and if they do not grow they may finish lower then expected in the tough ACC, and London causes a lot of turnovers, thus a turnover machine! Everyone seems to be a little up tight ,its only the 3rd game! Lets enjoy the effort and watch our team, ignor those who do not feel the same way and make counter points constructively. Its a little hard reading all the bitterness day in and day out and also see it on a blog about a game, be it a great Game! Go Flyers!
By Mike
November 20, 2009 9:33 AM | Link to this
I think yesterday’s game was a huge win for UD, and I think they will show up today. My question is why do you have to put WSU down in your arguments. Jeff is an idiot, but that does not mean he is a Raider fan. After 2 games I think CJ is showing how he may be the best all around player on the team.
By GemCity
November 20, 2009 9:39 AM | Link to this
Ok, I just checked the media guide. According to the media guide, both Pitt and Maryland were ranked #6 by the AP. (no mention of the coaches poll) I’m going to guess that Maryland was #3 in the ESPN Coaches Poll. Does anyone have Lexis Nexis access? Could anyone check the coaches poll rankings for the Maryland and Pitt games? My memory might be wrong, but I really thought Maryland was ranked #3 at the time.
By Janet
November 20, 2009 9:56 AM | Link to this
Jeff, for someone who seems to “know it all,” I would think you’d know that Dayton is now 2-0 with a defeat of a very strong Creighton team at home. Get it straight, hater, and we’ll see who’s laughing at the end of the season.
By Paul
November 20, 2009 10:02 AM | Link to this
Jeff’s another disgruntled UC fan who wishes for the old days when his Thugs were ranked in the top 20. Sorry Jeffy, those days are gone my friend, now is the time to align yourself with the Flyer faithful who stayed on the bandwagon all these years and are being rewarded with an exciting and QUALITY team.
By RC
November 20, 2009 10:02 AM | Link to this
Let’s not forget that Nova had a tough time with George Mason yesterday. They can be had. UD’s biggest advantage in general is that their depth and sub patterns wear down opponents. Yesterday, like so many times last year, they owned the last 5 minutes of the game because they had fresher legs. How deep is Nova’s bench?
By Jim
November 20, 2009 10:14 AM | Link to this
I am a huge Nova’ and I believe this game will down to the final 2 minutes based on the fact that Nova’s frontcourt is young, thus playing into UD’s strength. Now, come March, watch out for Nova, but today should be fun.
By Joe Pyne
November 20, 2009 10:17 AM | Link to this
Hey Flyer Fans…I predicted a loss to Ga Tech months ago but I’m here to eat a little crow and say nice game and nice win. No matter what anyone says, it’s hard to win on the road neutral court or not. Now, can you do it again against Nova? Can you go all the way and match what Xavier did in Puerto Rico last year?
By jason
November 20, 2009 10:22 AM | Link to this
we will be 2-1 in the tourney they play three games.
By Jbone
November 20, 2009 11:06 AM | Link to this
Did someone say UD will wear them down inside with Kurt? The Statue of Liberty has more game. UD would be doing Villanova a huge favor by passing the ball inside to the KurT.O., So lets hope Coach Gregory is not taking any advice from that comment.
By Scott
November 20, 2009 12:52 PM | Link to this
Is this game on TV
By Flyer Insider
November 20, 2009 1:20 PM | Link to this
Some corrections for Jbone. First, if you check the data, Kurt averaged 7+ points a game over the last 23 regular season games as a sophomore. What most people who shoot off their mouths don’t know is that Kurt had severe shin problems that year because his weight was too high (about 285). The last two years he dropped to 265 and the problems went away, but so did some strength and his ability to score inside. Second, my advice is to watch more than just the ball when you are trying to determine if someone has game. Kurt has been one of the premier post defenders in the country for the last two years. The only person who had a really big game against him in that time period was the kid from Kansas. Check out how he did against the top teams, and you’ll see a major reason why we are so successful. Gregory seems to be doing just fine trusting in Kurt and ignoring fans like you.
By X-fan
November 20, 2009 2:27 PM | Link to this
UD has plenty of talent, but it’s not Kurt Huelsman and London Warren. Those two do more to hurt you than help. Xavier’s point guards always own London and Kurt hasn’t shown anything since he stepped foot on campus. If you’re depending on those two to win then you’re in trouble. Good thing you’re not. Good luck against Nova.
By Aaron
November 20, 2009 5:15 PM | Link to this
Mad props to UD, are only down by 18 to nova with just over 12 minutes left to play. I did not think they were good enough to keep it this close.
By x-fan2
November 20, 2009 7:50 PM | Link to this
Seems as though Jeff was right. This game proves you can’t win games just with three point shooting. UD’s turnovers kill them.