Non-conference wrap-up and Atlantic 10 odds
.500 basketball. That is the level Dayton has played at so far in the 2017–18 season. Finishing non-conference action at 6–6 overall, the Flyers find themselves in an unfamiliar situation. Barring a miracle, Dayton will miss the NCAA tournament this year despite making it each of the last four seasons. Like it or not, Dayton has regressed since the departure of Archie Miller. That said, the Flyers’ season is not yet lost. Lets take a look back at Dayton’s non-conference slate then glance ahead to what the rest of this year could hold.
Opening the 2017–18 season with a buzzer-beating win over Ball State, the Flyers got off to an exciting and nerve-wracking start. Looking to continue its positive momentum, Dayton traveled to Charleston for an early season tournament. Unfortunately for the Flyers, their 1–0 start came to a quick end as Dayton dropped its first game of the tournament 72–69 to Hofstra. The Flyers did bounce back with a nice 79–65 win over Ohio the next day, but dropped their final game of the tournament to Old Dominion. Leaving Charleston with a 2–2 overall record, Dayton returned home hoping to get back on track.
Dayton defeated Akron 73–60 in its ensuing game to rise just above the .500 mark. That record would not last long, though, as the Flyers fell in their next two games to Auburn and Mississippi State. At 3–4 overall, Dayton found itself under .500 for the first time since the 2005–06 season. While Dayton did win its next game against Tennessee Tech, the Flyers turned around and dropped a Saturday afternoon home contest to Penn. Frustrated and inconsistent, the Flyers came back with an overtime win against Georgia State but once again failed to win back to back games. Dayton put up a fight in a very tough road test at Saint Mary’s, but ultimately fell to the Gales and submerged back under .500.
The Flyers returned home on Saturday, December 23rd, for their final non-conference game of the season. Behind a hot start from senior leader Darrell Davis, Dayton managed to down Wagner. After the game, head coach Anthony Grant said he was, “Glad to finish the non-conference portion of the season with a win today… to be able to close on a positive note is good.” While Dayton will head into Atlantic 10 play at an even .500, fans would hope the Flyers learned some valuable lessons in the first half of the season. With a young team and new head coach any rational fan would have expected ups and downs throughout non-conference play.
As for conference play and the rest of the season, Dayton really only has one realistic goal: improvement. While it’s still possible for the Flyers to make some improbable second half run or win the A-10 tournament at the end of the season, that should not be any Dayton fan’s sole focus. Whether Dayton makes a postseason tournament this year or not, Flyer fans should be concentrating on the future. If Dayton can continue improving game by game throughout the rest of this season, then the Flyers can realistically resume focusing on returning to the NCAA tournament. As always, wear red, be LOWD, and hope for the best.
