Comparisons to the 2019-20 team will start soon for the Flyers, if they haven’t already. That was the last Dayton team to make it through non-conference play with only two losses, and this team will do that if it can beat Longwood in its next game on Dec. 30.
I don’t think Dayton will finish 18-0 in Atlantic 10 Conference play as it did four years ago or rise to No. 3 in the AP poll. That was a once-in-a-generation season for Dayton. I do think what this team has accomplished so far is comparable to what that team achieved in non-conference play.
In 2019, the Flyers beat No. 62 Georgia, No. 29 Virginia Tech and No. 42 Saint Mary’s — those were the Ken Pomeroy ratings at the time they played Dayton. This season, Dayton beat No. 64 LSU, No. 77 St. John’s and No. 26 Cincinnati. Dayton lost on a neutral court in Colorado in 2019 and on Northwestern’s home court in 2023.
The big difference between the teams is Dayton took Kansas, then No. 8 on KenPom.com, to overtime in 2019 and lost decisively to No. 1 Houston this season in the Charleston Classic championship.
No one expected the Flyers to win 29 games in 2020. No one expects them to win 28 in 2024 — they’re playing one fewer game because of the UNLV cancellation. What everyone does expect now that the bar has been so high during this six-game winning streak is a fun ride into March — with many punches (figuratively) thrown along the way.
Fans want the Gem City Jam to return
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
The fans have spoken. They want to see the Gem City Jam return. The Dayton Daily News surveyed fans earlier this week after the game against Cincinnati, asking a simple question: Which Ohio teams would you like to see the Dayton Flyers play?
Fans could pick as many teams as they wanted on the list. There were 3,912 responses, and 90.4% of the voters picked Wright State. Only 11.7% picked Dayton’s former rival Xavier.
Here are the complete results: Wright State: 3,538; Xavier: 459; Ohio State: 358; Cincinnati: 310; Miami: 198; Ohio: 75; Toledo: 35; Bowling Green: 25; Cleveland State: 23; Akron: 19; Kent State: 19; and Youngstown State: 16.
I’d love to see Dayton play Wright State. I always want the best for the newspaper, and that coverage would generate a ton of interest. I don’t think it will happen until the cost of gas rises to $25 a gallon and teams are forced to schedule series within biking distance.
Dayton continues hot shooting streak
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
I messed up the ring finger on my left hand playing basketball three weeks ago. It’s crooked and inflexible and has really hampered my ability to fight pre-schoolers. The doctor thinks it’s a mallet injury. I have to see a hand specialist in two weeks. I can’t wait until Anthony Grant sees me in a split at some point this season, shooting photos with one hand and typing as slow as Tom Archdeacon, and I tell him I suffered an “upper-body injury.”
Grant revealed after the game Wednesday that DaRon Holmes II had stayed in the hospital overnight because of a stomach bug. I wondered if that was an upper-body or lower-body injury. Grant laughed. He loves to be vague about injuries.
Despite a weakened Holmes, Dayton dominated Oakland, making a school-record 18 3-pointers. Six years ago, walk-on Joey Gruden hit the 17th and final 3-pointer in a 106-79 victory against VCU. This time, it was walk-on Atticus Schuler who hit the record-breaking 3.
The Flyers are on a shooting streak like few others. They have shot 50% or better five times this season in 11 games after hitting that mark four times in 34 games last season. The 2020 Flyers hit that number only three times.
Dayton is making 9.9 3s per game. The school record, set in 1989-90, is 8.8.
“That Dayton team, when they shoot the ball like that,” Oakland coach Greg Kampe told Archdeacon, “they can beat anybody in the country ... Anybody ... And that’s NOT hyperbole!”
Fast Break
Here’s other news that might interest Flyer fans:
🏀 Dayton received two votes in the AP poll last week, one from me and one from Dave Preston, of WTOP Radio in Washington, D.C. I didn’t want to be the first person to vote for the Flyers and be seen as a homer. Preston beat me to it a week earlier. Dayton’s climb to No. 23 in the NET could bring it a few more votes next week. It also depends on how many teams ahead of it lose.
🏀 The Athletic profiled former Flyer Toumani Camara this week with a story headlined: “Toumani Camara’s improbable rise in Portland: From 52nd pick to Trail Blazers starter.”
“He has served a great purpose for us,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups recalled.. “His head coach really believes in being competitive and playing defense and scrapping out there — and that’s what he does — he shares my spirit that way. I think what I need to do better for him, and with him, going forward is just always letting him guard the best player. Not always the guy bringing it up the floor. So he can learn how to guard everybody, because he is going to be that type of player.”
What do you want to know about the Flyers?
I want to hear from you. Reach out to me directly at david.jablonski@coxinc.com with your questions and feedback on the team or this newsletter.
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