The rollercoaster that is UD basketball this season continued on Saturday night as the Flyers scored a season high 96 points after the dismal performance against Temple.
Mickey Perry led the way matching a career high with 15 points on 5-7 shooting, all from beyond the arc.
“My teammates found me and stuck with me,” said the senior guard from Chicago. “I got some opportunities after their hard drives and we knocked a couple down.”
Equally as important in the victory was London Warren who played a very good floor game and filled up the stat sheet with 6 points, 8 assists, 8 rebounds and no turnovers. He was very disruptive on defense forcing UMass into difficult shots leading to Flyer run outs.
“We wanted to be aggressive offensively, attack and play at a pace that was aggressive and confident,” said UD coach Brian Gregory. “I thought we did that.”
The Flyers (19-9, 8-6) now turn their attention to the No. 24 Richmond Spiders (22-7, 11-3) who are coming off a double overtime loss at Xavier.
Walk-on Logan Nourse, coming off his best performance in a Flyer uniform notching his first career point and adding an assist stressed the importance of Wednesday night’s game: “We need to knock them off to keep out at large hopes alive and also build momentum going into the A-10 tournament.”
Now 27 games into the season, UD stands at 18-9 and on the outside of the NCAA Tournament looking in. Will this sad reality be enough motivation for someone to step up and lead this team in their final three conference games and the A-10 tournament?
Don’t Just Win
UMass (10-17, 4-9, RPI: 188) is having a season to forget as they limp into UD Arena coming off losses at George Washington and at home to St. Louis. In their losses, the Minutemen shoot 37% from the floor and 27% from beyond the arc. Look for those statistics tonight as UD should be able to contain UMass’ attack. The question will be can the Flyers convert on the offensive end as they are coming off their worst offensive output since WWII.
Just when Flyer fans thought UD had hit rock bottom in the loss Sunday to Duquesne, the Flyers come out against Temple and play one of the ugliest games in the program’s history.
From the field, UD shot a horrid 26% on 15-57 shooting and had absolutely no rhythm whatsoever to their offense. Coming off a poor performance over the weekend, one would expect a sense of urgency to come over UD considering they were (are?) still in the hunt for a NCAA tournament bid and were playing the No. 20 team in the nation.
Quite the contrary. UD came out flat and wasted possession after possession with bad shots, wild passes and rushed play.
Chris Wright led with way for UD with 12 points and Rob Lowery chipped in 7 points. Apart from those two players, no other Flyer had more than 4 points.
Mark Neal and I will be talking to ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi tomorrow from 5pm-7pm to get his take on UD and if he thinks they can still slip into the Big Dance.
UD returns home to play UMass this Saturday at 7pm.
Temple’s attack is led by their dynamic backcourt duo of Ryan Brooks and sharp shooter Juan Fernandez. Fernandez, who many have likened to a more talented version of Temple great Pepe Sanchez, leads the A-10 in 3PT% connecting on 43% of his chances. Accompanying him is Ryan Brooks who not only leads the Owls in scoring (14.9 ppg) but also is second in rebounds and shoots 80% from the foul line. UD’s guards had better be ready for a challenge tomorrow night coming off one of their worst performances of the year. Limiting turnovers and better execution on offense will be crucial as Temple only concedes 57.8 points per game at the Liacouras Center.
Play Smart … And Hard
Coach Gregory hasn’t had to motivate his players to play hard at all this season. UD plays as tough as any team in the country. The problem has been combining that aggressive, in your face style of play with better decisions in all facets of the game. There will be little room for error against No. 20 Temple tomorrow night who is 11-1 at home this season while UD is just 5-7 away from UD Arena.
Floor Leadership
On more than one occasion during the Duquesne game last weekend, as well as in other road games this year, momentum swings have left the Flyers in disarray. As the Duquesne crowd began to get into the game following a run out slam or three-pointer, UD players were left with blank looks or were yelling at one another. At this point in the season, with as experienced of a team as this Flyer squad is, it’s time for a few players to step up and take ownership. Tomorrow night would be a great time to start.
…and the frustrating 2009-2010 campaign for Dayton continues.
There have been so many ‘missed opportunities’ this season, it’s almost time to characterize this as a ‘missed season’.
Today’s game against Duquesne epitomized the Flyers problems, as well as their lack of improvement 24 games into the season. UD is now 18-8 overall and 7-5 in the A-10.
Junior Chris Wright, who surpassed the 1,000 point mark in the first half, came out energized scoring UD’s first 11 points. Though after the 15:14 mark of the first half, Wright had only 4 points and was effectively taken out of the game due to foul trouble.
Chris Johnson then did his best to energize UD on offense burying 6-13 from deep and ended with a game-high 21 points and 6 rebounds.
But the problem was not offense. Instead, it was team defense and weak point guard play that let the Flyers down over, and over and over.
Duquesne is a mediocre team at best, though tonight they outrebounded UD including 15 offensive boards and scored 42 points in the paint. The Dukes shot 45% against a porous UD defense, and missed a handful of wide-open looks from the perimeter.
UD turned the ball over 21 times and could not get into any type of rhythm, especially when Rob Lowery was on the floor. Lowery continually tried to make something out of nothing, which led to turnovers and Duquesne run outs.
London Warren played better, but could not stay on the floor because of foul trouble. He eventually fouled out with 1:19 left in the game on a questionable reach-in call.
Combined, the UD point guards had 10 turnovers while Duquesne as a team had 11. And down the stretch, the combination of Warren’s absence and Lowery’s inability to handle the ball left UD’s offense scattered and panicked.
UD will try to bounce back at No. 20 Temple (22-5, 10-2) Wednesday night at 6:30pm.
On the season, UD is 12-0 when they hold opponents to less than 60 points. Considering the offensive struggles Dayton has had on the road this season, look for their defense to play a key role this afternoon.
Neutralize Damian Saunders
The Flyers were unable to deal with the extremely athletic Saunders in their first meeting giving up 21 points and 11 rebounds to the Duquesne junior. Saunders has the ability to quickly engage the home crowd with rim-rattling slams and emphatic blocks. Entering the game, Saunders ranks third in the NCAA with 18 double doubles and is averaging 3.5 blocks per game. Slowing him down will be crucial if UD wants to come away with a victory.
Stop Speculating, Start Winning
With the incessant talk about whether or not the Flyers will make it to the NCAA Tournament, it’s important to remember one thing: UD is in sole possession of their Tournament fate. Starting with the important road game this afternoon, UD’s next five games (see below) give them the chance to cement their invite if they close the season strong. I believe if they win five of their last six, including a win at Temple, UD will get into the tournament.
UD coach Brian Gregory consistently insists that his team’s progression is his highest priority. Thus, Flyer victories would comes as a result of improved play and experience.
Tonight’s game, albeit a 68-54 win for the Flyers, did not live up to coach Gregory’s expectation as UD digressed by playing down to a lowly La Salle team and making fundamental errors on both ends of the floor.
“Very rarely are we out scrapped and out clawed,” said Gregory. “[La Salle] did that to us [tonight].”
The Explorers stumbled into UD Arena missing three key seniors (Yves Mekongo, Kimmani Barrett and Ruben Guillandeaux) who combined to account for almost half of the team’s points. Only eight players from La Salle suited up but there was no lack of fight as they outrebounded UD by 10 including 19 offensive boards. Aaric Murray’s dunk with 8:33 tied the game at 49, but after that it was all Flyers.
UD rattled of 19 straight putting the game out of reach effectively wearing down a short-handed Explorer club. Marcus Johnson keyed the run driving strong to the hoop and helping keep La Salle to 34% shooting for the game. Johnson finished with 16 points on 7-11 shooting.
The other bright spot for UD was the post play of Devin Searcy. Coming off a strong performance on Saturday, Searcy backed it up with a 9 point and 8 rebound game tonight playing with more confidence and intensity.
“I know what my team needs and I just try to go out and provide it for them,” said Searcy.
Though if the Flyers want to be competitive in their next two road games at Duquesne (14-12, 5-7) on Saturday and at No. 20 Temple next Wednesday, they are going to have to play with more energy and improve their execution. Considering the trouble UD has playing on the road, these next two games will really show if this team has what it takes to make it to the NCAA Tournament.
In UD’s 7 losses, the Flyers have shot 39/151 (25%) from beyond the arc. Obviously this statistic is skewed with the absence of Luke Fabrizius, but other Flyer guards need to start making better decisions. Better shot selection and crisper offensive execution will be key as the Flyers enter the final six games of Atlantic 10 play.
2. CJ … Shoot!
Defenses have no doubt keyed in on Chris Johnson after his torrid start to the season. The sophomore guard entering tomorrow night’s game against LaSalle is averaging 12.3 points per game, though before the St. Louis game on Saturday, he hadn’t taken at least 10 shots in a game since the Xavier game on January 16th. I’m not suggesting he force up poor attempts, rather I’d like to see coach Gregory run more sets to get him involved and while encouraging him to find his own offense.
3. Free-Throw Shooting
After the horrendous 10-20 free throw shooting performance in the double overtime loss at St. Louis, I can only imagine how many foul shots the Flyers have taken during practice this week. Look for the Flyers to be more focused on the foul line tomorrow night, as they are shooting 66% as a team from the foul line on the year.
Due to excessive snowfall, frustration and sadness, I will substitute my blog recap with an invitation to tune into the Dayton Sports Scene with Mark Neal and I this afternoon at 5pm to recap the game.
St. Louis traditionally is one of the best defensive teams in the Atlantic 10. This year is no exception with the Billikens ranked second in the conference surrendering just 59 points per game. Even though UD has looked much improved in their half court offense in the last two games, St. Louis’ stingy defense combined with their home crowd advantage will prove problematic for the Flyers. I’d like to see UD push the ball in transition not letting St. Louis’ defense get set while capitalizing on the open-court wing play of Chris Wright, Chris Johnson and Marcus Johnson.
2. Sustained Effort
The Flyers recent poise and smarter play has been impressive considering how far they’ve come since the beginning the year. The Billikens will surely test these attributes, as will their crowd. UD will need to maintain a high level of play for 40 minutes in order to put away a pesky St. Louis club.
3. Free-Throw Shooting
Points will no doubt be hard to come by on Saturday. This matchup has the makings to be a grinder as the majority of SLU/ UD games are. What could be a deciding factor in the game will be how many times UD puts SLU on the free-throw line, and how well the Flyers knock down their own foul shots. Keep in mind that 44% of Charlotte’s points on Wednesday came from the foul line. The Flyers cannot expect to win committing 20+ fouls on a regular basis.
Those of you Luke Fabrizius fans awaiting his return will need to wait at least another week.
Coach Gregory said he would make an announcement when he felt Fabrizius was ready to return which would be next week at the very earliest.
“We’re shutting him down for a little bit,” said Gregory. “He needs to first get back to 100% healthy.”
Fabrizius, who is averaging 6.4 points per game and is shooting a team high 47% from beyond the arc, has had leg and back problems that have limited his playing time.
Following the big win over Xavier, the question was whether or not the Flyers (17-6, 6-3) could follow up with another big victory over A-10 leading Charlotte (18-6, 8-2). The answer? An emphatic YES.
“Dayton played the best against us as anybody’s played against us all year,” said Charlotte coach Bobby Lutz. “They were terrific.”
For the second game in a row, the Flyers were led by junior Chris Wright, who did it all. The improvements many Flyer fans have waited for in Wright’s game have arrived. He scored a career high 30 points on 11-15 shooting (including 2 triples), grabbed 9 rebounds and played menacing defense notching two steals and a block.
“He’s making good basketball plays for us,” said UD coach Brian Gregory. “Every day he’s getting extra shooting in and his confidence is up.”
As Mark Neal and I have discussed numerous times on the Dayton Sports Scene, no one has ever doubted whether Wright has the ability to do what he did tonight. The difference in the last few games has been the combination of his supreme athleticism with improved decision making.
Two plays stand out in my mind to illustrate this point. First, Wright caught a pass in transition on the right wing outside the three-point lane. Charlotte guard Derrio Green positioned himself for a charge, but just before Wright took off for the basket, he changed his flight plan. Instead of going directly to the basket and charging over Green, he jumped toward the lane avoiding the contact, finishing with his left hand. For the Flyer Faithful, it was poetry in motion.
The next play was less exciting, but showed just as much progression in Wright’s game. Coach Gregory isolated him in the post early in the game, and after backing his defender down, he faded away with great body control and hit the 12 footer. Earlier in the season, that shot was as foreign to Wright as would be a triple double from walk-on Logan Nourse. Flyer fans should be elated to see this type of growth in Wright’s game. (Sidenote: No disrespect to Nourse or any of the walk-on’s who played well tonight and are an integral part of the team.)
In addition to Wright’s marvelous showing, the Flyer’s defense absolutely stymied the 49ers offense holding them to 25% shooting (their lowest percentage all season), and just 12 total field goals. Charlotte, who entered the game having won 7 Atlantic-10 games in a row and averaging better than 74 points per game, looked incredibly out of synch. Including tonight’s game, Flyer opponents are now shooting under 40% for the year.
“Our defense was even more focused [than the Xavier game],” said coach Gregory.
Following these two signature blowouts against upper echelon A-10 foes, the Flyers will be tested on the road Saturday at St. Louis (15-8, 6-3). The game will tip at 4pm ET and will be broadcast on ESPNU.
Coming off the thumping of rival Xavier, the Flyers need to capitalize on their momentum as Charlotte invades UD Arena. The 49ers, who are 18-5 (8-1), are on a seven game winning streak including a 10 point win over No. 21 Temple. Look for UD to jump out early as they did against the Musketeers to fire up the crowd and ride that momentum throughout the game.
2. Hands Off!
The biggest difference between UD’s first game against Xavier was their defense, particularly on the perimeter. The Flyer guards defended well on Saturday without committing mindless reach in fouls. In order to beat Charlotte, they will need to continue playing defense with their feet, and not with their hands since Charlotte as a team leads the Atlantic 10 in free-throw shooting at 73%.
3. Down the Stretch
During the 49ers seven game winning streak, four of those wins have been by 5 points or less. Looking at their whole body of work, they have won every close game so far this season, with their losses all coming by at least 9 points. Look for UD’s depth to play a factor in the last five minutes of the game considering Charlotte has a short bench.
Kurt Huelsman does a lot of things a casual basketball fan overlooks.
He sets strong screens. He anchors a very talented defense. He’s a two-time team captain. He wins ESPN The Magazine academic awards.
What Huelsman does not do, and what is unfortunately most often discussed, is fill up a stat sheet. Or bring the crowd to its feet with put-back slams. Or knock down a short corner jumper.
Instead of trying to defend the 4-year starter, I’d like to provide some perspective.
Kurt has started all 122 of his games in a Flyer uniform because he knows his role. Play physical, clear out opponents when the ball goes up and every now and then, make a short jump hook.
Three and a half years into his UD career, I’d argue he’s done those things quite well.
How many opposing guards have caught a (legal) thud from Huelsman as they darted through the paint? How many rebounding lanes has he created for prolific rebounders like Chris Johnson and Chris Wright? And for his career, he is shooting 48% from the field.
Not flashy, but good enough to the job done.
That said, I’ve heard many of the complaints about his game and many are warranted. I’d agree it’s frustrating to see a guard double-team him and take the ball right out of his hands. And yes, it’s hard to believe the number of chip shots from point blank range he’s missed standing 6’10. Or the classic: “Why didn’t he just slam it!?”
Though when you look at his body of work, his durability and the leadership he brings every night, it becomes easier to understand how valuable he is to the Flyers.
So next time the person next to you at UD Arena gripes over Huelsman, remember that his best attributes don’t show up in a box score.
Today’s performance by the Flyers encapsulates exactly what the Flyer Faithful had been expecting to see all season.
As opposed to wondering why it took so long for the Flyers (16-6, 5-3) to get to this point, take a second to remember that this Flyer team has made a habit of playing to their current situation. Their current situation is simple: if this squad has NCAA Tournament aspirations, they need to put together a string of wins, starting with a win today. As they have done time and time again, the Flyers did just that taking it to rival Xavier (16-7, 8-2) from the opening tip in a 90-65 victory.
“I see our team progressing in a good way,” said UD coach Brian Gregory. “We’ve practiced better, our guys have become even more focused and so now we just need to keep taking steps forward.”
The most important part of coach Gregory’s presser in my mind is how he alluded to the improvement in the team’s focus making smarter plays and taking better shots.
From the get go, it was clear UD was locked in and ready for this game. Seniors Kurt Huelsman and London Warren started the game with great energy creating turnovers, playing sticky defense and getting the crowd into the game.
After 20 minutes of play, the Flyers had built a 13 point lead and holding Xavier to a dismal 8-26 (30%) shooting from the field. Mickey Perry came up big in the period playing solid defense and adding 7 points.
In the second half, Xavier guard Jordan Crawford did his best to keep Xavier in the game scoring 9 quick points cutting the Flyer lead to 10 with a deep three pointer with 13:51 to play.
Though the Musketeers would not get any closer as UD kept their double-digit lead throughout the second half keyed by big defensive stops and superb shooting. The Flyers shot 56% from the field for the game (72% in the second half) and converted on 7 of 13 shots from beyond the arc. Rob Lowery finished with 16 points (including 3 treys) 5 assists and 4 rebounds.
Another very important aspect of the game was rebounding.
“We knew [Xavier] was going to make a more serious effort on the glass because of what happened [in Cincinnati] and our guys had to respond in turn,” said coach Gregory. “And I thought our guys did a great job of that.”
In the two meetings between UD and Xavier, the Flyers have absolutely owned the backboard outrebounding the Muskies 93-58.
Today, UD had 25 rebounds in the first half -- Xavier had 24 in the entire game, compared to UD’s 42.
The Flyers leading rebounder today was Chris Wright who snared 9 boards, added 17 points and was a nuisance for Xavier all day long. Wright’s performance today was most impressive because he changed how he attacked the Xavier defensive scheme by not playing out of control, and effectively put the team on his back for long stretches of the game. He showed great leadership, which UD is going to need going forward.
“He’s taking a really serious approach to what he needs to do to continue to grow as a player,” said coach Gregory of Chris Wright. “I thought he did everything and more in terms of what we ask him to do today.”
The Flyers will take on Charlotte (17-5, 2-1) Wednesday at 7pm at UD Arena.
After the 78-74 Xavier victory over UD in mid-January, Muskies coach Chris Mack had this to say about junior guard Dante Jackson: “He is the emotional sparkplug of our team.” Jackson poured in 19 points connecting on 5-8 treys and was a real emotional catalyst for XU every time the Flyers started to gain momentum. If the Flyers want to pull out a victory Saturday, they will not only need their own sparkplug, but they will need to neutralize Jackson and Xavier point guard Terrell Holloway. Much of the Muskies offense runs through those two players, creating scoring lanes for leading scorer Jordan Crawford and open looks for sharpshooter Brad Redford. An exemplary defensive effort from UD will be necessary to disrupt the balanced Musketeers attack, and will likely be the difference between victory or defeat.
2. Step Up, Chris Wright
The Musketeers strategy against Chris Wright earlier in the season was simple: concede the outside shot, and wait for his out of control drives to the basket. Unfortunately for the Flyers, Xavier executed their scheme to perfection, drawing three first half fouls on Wright never allowing him to get comfortable in the flow of the game. He finished 2-7 from the field with 10 points and 9 rebounds in just 14 minutes of play. Tomorrow, Wright needs to take what the defense gives him making the right play, as opposed to trying to do to much. Since mid-January, Wright has improved his outside game and has had some flashes of brilliance on both ends of the floor. He will need his best all-around performance tomorrow to help UD secure a win.
3. Flyer Faithful
Over the years, the Flyer Faithful have packed UD Arena creating one of the most unique basketball environments in the country. There is no question the 13,000+ fans have an extraordinary impact on the game energizing the Flyers, especially when Xavier is in town. This year, though, Mother Nature may work against the Flyers in the form of an impending snowstorm set to hit the Miami Valley Friday and Saturday. Hopefully the storm will hold off and the sellout crowd will be able to propel the Flyers to victory.
