Dayton Flyers to play La Salle or Davidson in A-10 quarterfinals

UD’s next game is at noon Friday in Pittsburgh

Credit: David Jablonski - Staff Writer

Credit: David Jablonski - Staff Writer

The Dayton Flyers head to the postseason with the bitter taste of an 87-81 loss at George Washington. It will linger for six days. That’s how long they have to wait to play in the Atlantic 10 tournament quarterfinals at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

There will not be an easy win in this tournament. Dayton is the No. 1 seed, but it will play No. 8 seed La Salle (15-14, 9-9) or No. 9 seed Davidson (15-13, 8-9) at noon Friday. Both teams are dangerous.

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Dayton beat Davidson 89-82 in overtime on Feb. 24. The Flyers had an easier time against La Salle, winning 66-55 in the A-10 opener on Dec. 30, but the Explorers have one of the conference’s best players in Jordan Price.

If Dayton advances to the semifinals and the other top seeds win, its opponent at 1 p.m. Saturday would be No. 4 seed Rhode Island.

The break should help the Flyers. It will be the longest break they’ve had between games since December. Coach Archie Miller plans to make the most of the time. He’s concerned about the team losing its edge.

“We’re going to work,” he said. “We have to work. When you’re winning it’s good, but there’s some slippage. But I’m not going to take away from what just happened. We’re 24-6. We’re the regular-season champs. At the end of the day, this is very disappointing, but it’s going to refocus us as we get ready for that first round.”

Here’s a quick glance at the other A-10 tournament matchups:

Wednesday: No. 12 seed Massachusetts vs. No. 13 St. Joseph's, 6 p.m.; No. 11 Saint Louis vs. No. 14 Duquesne. Both games are on ASN.

Thursday: No. 8 La Salle vs. No. 9 Davidson, noon; No. 5 St. Bonaventure vs. UMass/St. Joe's, 2:30 p.m.; No. 7 George Mason vs. No. 10 Fordham, 6 p.m.; No. 6 George Washington vs. Saint Louis/Duquesne, 8:30 p.m. All games are on NBC Sports Network.

Friday: No. 1 Dayton vs. La Salle/Davidson, noon; No. 4 Rhode Island vs. St. Bonaventure/UMass/St. Joe's, 2:30 p.m.; No. 2 VCU vs. George Mason/Fordham, 6 p.m.; No. 3 Richmond vs. George Washington/Saint Louis/Duquesne, 8:30 p.m. All games are on NBC Sports Network.

Saturday: First semifinal, 1 p.m.; Second semifinal, 3:30 p.m. Both games on the CBS Sports Network.

Sunday: Championship game, 12:30 p.m. (CBS).

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