Dayton basketball: Flyers rank last in nation in one metric

After that play, Dayton applied full-court pressure. VCU beat the trap with a pass from halfcourt to Michael Belle, a junior forward who picked VCU over Dayton in the spring of 2023. Belle scored with a layup.

Now trailing 69-39, Dayton gave the ball to Javon Bennett, who dribbled past the halfcourt line only to have the ball knocked away from behind by Ahmad Nowell. The turnover led to a 3-pointer by VCU’s Jadrian Tracey.

On its next possession, Dayton turned the ball over again. L’Etang held the ball too long above the 3-point line. Barry Evans came from behind for the steal. He dribbled the other way and threw an alley-oop pass to Djokovic, who tipped the ball in with one hand, capping a 10-0 run.

Dayton faced its biggest deficit, 35 points, which was also the largest lead Saint Louis had seven days earlier in a 102-71 victory against Dayton.

“The onslaught is on here tonight,” ESPN announcer Mike Corey said.

In an eight-day stretch, Dayton suffered two of the five most lopsided losses in A-10 play this season. Dayton lost its first seven games by a total of 49 points and has since suffered two losses by a combined 57 points.

Dayton’s slump has caught the attention of national college basketball analysts, such as Erik Haslam, of Haslametrics.com.

“Dayton seemingly hits a new bottom with every performance,” Haslam wrote on X on Sunday. “Their most recent showing, a 99-73 loss to VCU on Friday night, earned the Flyers their worst game efficiency rating of the entire season (-45.06).”

Dayton ranks last in the nation, No. 365, in Haslam’s momentum metric, which measures how a team has fared in its last four to eight games compared to its overall season performance.

“(Dayton) has failed to perform above their season norm in six straight games,” Haslam wrote, “last performing above said norm during a win over Loyola Chicago on January 16. Currently placed 114th in the country by our performance rankings, the Flyers are at their lowest point since December 2022. They get a long week to try to fix their issues.”

Dayton (15-9, 6-5) returns to action at 4 p.m. Sunday against Davidson (15-9, 6-5) at UD Arena. The Flyers had the same record in the A-10 through 11 games last season and then won six of their last seven games to finish 12-6. It will be tough to match that this season with so many challenging games ahead.

Here’s a quick glance at the final seven games:

1: Home vs. Davidson (Feb. 15): Davidson is 4-1 in A-10 road games but 2-4 at home.

The Flyers have won 10 straight games in the series against Davidson since a loss in the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament quarterfinals in 2017.

2: At George Mason (Feb. 18): The Patriots (21-3, 9-2) are tied with VCU for second place. Their only losses are to Rhode Island and Duquesne.

George Mason beat Dayton 67-59 at UD Arena last season, snapping Dayton’s 26-game home winning streak. It has won four straight games in the series. It’s Dayton’s first four-game losing streak against an A-10 team since it lost four in a row to VCU in 2018 and 2019.

3: Home vs. Duquesne (Feb. 21): Dayton won 71-65 at Duquesne on Jan. 13. The Dukes (14-10, 6-5) share fifth place with Dayton and Davidson and take a three-game winning streak into a road game at St. Bonaventure on Saturday.

Duquesne has lost 11 straight games at Dayton since an 83-73 victory on Feb. 1, 2012.

4: Home vs. Saint Louis (Feb. 24): The Billikens, now ranked 18th in the Associated Press top-25 poll, are 23-1 overall and 11-0 in the A-10. They have won 17 games in a row.

Saint Louis has lost 11 straight games at UD Arena since a 67-59 loss in 2014.

5: At George Washington (Feb. 27): Dayton won the first matchup 79-72 on Jan. 6 at UD Arena.

The Revolutionaries (13-11, 4-7) have lost four straight games. They did not have their leading scorer, Rafael Castro, for the last three games because of an injury.

Dayton has lost two straight games at the Charles E. Smith Center and is 4-6 in its last 10 trips to the arena.

6: At Richmond (March 3): The Spiders (13-11, 3-8) took a six-game losing streak into a game Tuesday at home against George Mason.

Dayton lost 69-64 at Richmond’s Robins Center last season after winning four games in a row at the arena.

7: Home vs. VCU (March 6): The Flyers and Rams have split the regular-season series four years in a row. Dayton will have to win its 15th straight game on Senior Night to keep that streak alive after the loss Friday at the Siegel Center.