Dayton basketball: Flyers finish 0-2 on Philly trip with loss at Saint Joseph’s

Here’s a quick recap of the loss to the Hawks:

What it means: Dayton (14-6, 5-2) has lost two straight games after opening Atlantic 10 Conference play with five straight victories. It’s the first time this season Dayton has lost back-to-back games and the first time since a three-game losing streak in January 2025.

Saint Joseph’s (12-8, 4-3) beat Dayton for the second time in a row. The other victory came in the A-10 tournament last season.

The Hawks ended a five-game regular-season losing streak to Dayton. Dayton last lost to the Hawks in the regular season in 2021: 97-84 at Hagan Arena.

Dayton fell two games behind A-10 leader Saint Louis (19-1, 7-0).

Stars of the game: Dasear Haskins, Jaiden Glover-Toscano and Derek Simpson all scored 20 for Saint Joseph’s.

De’Shayne Montgomery led Dayton with 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Javon Bennett scored 18 on 7-of-18 shooting.

Turning point: Dayton trailed 40-38 at halftime and tied the game on its first possession of the second half with a dunk by Keonte Jones. Saint Joseph’s followed with a 9-0 run and led the rest of the game, stretching its lead to as many as 16 points.

Better shooting: Dayton made 9 of 23 3-pointers after making 3 of 23 against La Salle, though Amaël L’Etang missed all five of his attempts and is 0-for-7 in the last three games.

Looking ahead: Dayton plays Rhode Island at 7 p.m. Tuesday at UD Arena.

HALFTIME RECAP

Dasear Haskins made a 3-pointer from the corner at the final buzzer in the first half to give Saint Joseph’s a 38-36 halftime lead against Dayton on Saturday at Hagan Arena.

Here’s a quick recap of the first half:

Key players: Dayton guard De’Shayne Montgomery led all scorers with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting.

Haskins led Saint Joseph’s with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting.

Key stat: Dayton made 5 of 13 3-pointers (38%) after making 3 of 23 (13%) in a 67-64 loss Wednesday at La Salle. Montgomery and Javon Bennett each made two.

Saint Joseph’s made 7 of 18 3s (39%).

Big runs: Dayton led 13-5 in the opening minutes. Saint Joseph’s then scored seven straight points.

Saint Joseph’s led 35-29 with two minutes to play. Dayton then scored seven straight points to take a 36-35 lead on a jump shot by Bennett with 43 seconds to play.

Lineup news: Amaël L’Etang returned to the starting lineup, replacing Jaiun Simon. L’Etang started the first 13 games and then missed four games with a knee injury. He came off the bench the last two games against Loyola Chicago and La Salle.

Injury news: Dayton guard Jordan Derkack missed his fourth straight game with a lower-body injury.