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On the bench, Grant proved to be the polar opposite of his predecessor, Archie Miller, whose scowl would have a banner in the rafters if such a thing could be measured.
“It’s a whole different feeling seeing Coach Grant and Coach Archie,” senior guard Darrell Davis said. “Coach Grant is more quiet and laid back. What he says goes. Archie is more up-tempo. He’s trying to get you to understand what he’s trying to say.”
😀 pic.twitter.com/Lt5FY5AsW0— Dayton Basketball (@DaytonMBB) November 6, 2017A cool moment from Saturday's game, coach Grant's return to @UDArena!
The Bond. We have something truly special at @univofdayton.
Grant and the Flyers enjoyed a pleasant evening Saturday in an exhibition game against Ohio Dominican. There wasn't much reason for the new coach to scream and yell. A 79-61 victory answered a few questions about the team, such as who would start and which of the freshmen would be most prepared to contribute.
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However, the first regular-season game will provide a truer test. The Flyers play Ball State at 7 p.m. Friday in the season opener at UD Arena. The Cardinals have won 21 games two seasons in a row.
“This week it starts for real,” Grant said. “We’ve got a great opponent coming in here in Ball State. You look at what they’ve accomplished over the last couple of years. It’s a veteran team. This will be a big challenge for us. We’ve got to make sure we’ve got the right focus and the right preparation.”
Ball State routed Saint Francis (Ind.) 91-67 in an exhibition game Monday. The Cardinals shot 46.2 percent from 3-point range (12 of 26) and had seven players score between 8 and 14 points. One of their top returners, junior Trey Moses, didn’t play because of a hamstring injury, but coach James Whitford said Tuesday he expects Moses to play Friday.
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Dayton started studying the film of Ball State’s exhibition game Tuesday.
“We’ll break it down a little bit,” Grant said, “and get a better feel for the things we need to do to put ourselves in the best position to be successful.”
This is a great moment in Dayton walk-on history. https://t.co/9ktxq7aHHD
— David Jablonski (@DavidPJablonski) November 6, 2017
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