On the offensive end, at least, Dayton did raise its level of play in a 91-82 victory against Bethune-Cookman at UD Arena. After shooting 7.7% (2 of 26) from 3-point range in a 74-62 loss at Cincinnati, the Flyers shot a season-best 57.9% (11 of 19) in their 29th straight victory in non-conference home games.
Bennett scored 25 points and made 4 of 7 3s after making 1 of 10 in the previous game. It wasn’t an easy game in any way, but the Flyers didn’t flirt with an upset loss as then 20th-ranked Auburn did against Bethune-Cookman on the opening night of the season.
“Kudos to them,” Bennett said. “This is not an easy place to play in, and they fought. We stuck with what we were doing in practice all week, and we found a way to win.”
Dayton (3-1) lead fluctuated between 13 and 6 points throughout the second half.
“This team took a top-25 team in the country to overtime a few weeks ago,” Grant said. “They’re really talented, and they came to play today. I’m proud of our guys. We were able to do what we needed to do to make sure we got the win.”
Dayton delivered its best 3-point shooting performance of the season and also its best free-throw shooting effort (26 of 32, 81.3%).
“I thought we were really efficient on the offensive end tonight sharing the ball,” Grant said. “We had 19 assists. I thought the ball movement led to some good opportunities from the 3-point line. I thought guys understood better how to help each other have success on that side of the ball.”
Credit: David Jablonski
Here are three takeaways from Dayton’s fourth game:
1: Bethune-Cookman handled Dayton’s press well: Keonte Jones and De’Shayne Montgomery often lead Dayton’s full-court pressure defense. They have help behind them from Bennett, Jordan Derkack and others.
The press makes opponents work hard to get the ball past half court and sometimes leads to turnovers. It also often leads to open shots for the other team.
That’s what happened in the first half Saturday. Bethune-Cookman made 15 of 24 2-point field goals. They trailed by only six points, 45-39, despite Dayton’s 66.7% shooting (8 of 12) from 3-point range in the half.
In the second half, Dayton didn’t apply the pressure as often. Bethune-Cookman committed only 10 turnovers after Dayton’s previous opponent, Cincinnati, turned the ball over 24 times.
“They were very aggressive against our press,” Bennett said. “Coach saw that and made adjustments.”
Grant said the coaches track the results of the press throughout the game and it was still a net positive for the team.
“Their game plan, obviously, was to attack the pressure,” Grant said. “They were able to have success doing that over both halves. It’s the first time we’ve played an opponent that’s been able to sustain that.”
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
2: Second-chance points hurt Dayton: Bethune-Cookman grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and outscored Dayton 20-12 in second-chance points.
“They got back almost half of their misses tonight,” Grant said. “Those are lessons on the defensive end we’ll have to address. But we’re happy that we were able to get the win.”
Dayton led by as many as 13 points in the second half, 70-57 with 9 minutes, 26 seconds remaining. Bethune-Cookman cut the deficit to six points twice with under seven minutes to play.
Two free throws by Keonte Jones and a layup by Derkack pushed the lead back to 10 points entering the final five minutes.
Bethune-Cookman again cut the Dayton lead to six points in the final minute, but the Flyers scored three points at the free-throw line to put the game away.
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
3: The Flyers made their first major lineup change: Derkack replaced Jacob Conner in the starting lineup. Conner started the first three games. Derkack may have begun the season in the starting lineup but missed most of the offseason after undergoing surgery in June and then hurt his shoulder in a fall during preseason practices.
In his first start, Derkack played a season-high 30 minutes, while Conner played a season-low 10.
Derkack scored 10 points on 3-of-5 shooting. He led the team with six assists but also had five of Dayton’s 13 turnovers.
“I play the same way, regardless of whether I’m starting or not,” Derkack said. “I trust coach Grant’s ideas. That’s why I’m here. I trust whatever he wants me to do. If he wants to start me, if he wants to come off the bench, I’m good with either.”
NEXT GAME
Who: Dayton at Marquette
When: Wednesday, 7:30 p.m.
Streaming: truTV
Radio: 95.7-FM, 1290-AM
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