CHANDLER (AZ) -- Is it possible to play worse than Dayton did against
Xavier last night? I couldn’t even watch the whole thing. If UD ever wanted to show the selection committee just how bad a team can look, they certainly picked the right time to do it. It didn’t seem to matter which five players were on the court, they all seemed like they were afraid of the ball. It looked like there were six Xavier players verses UD’s five.
That being said, the season is not over. Even with that dreadful loss, Dayton still controls its own fate with regard to the NCAA Tournament. For once, they actually picked a year when it seems like every team is doing their best to be knocked off the bubble. Even their own missteps look small in comparison to some of the perennial invitees such as Notre Dame, Kentucky and Georgetown. There still seems to be light at the end of the tunnel.
After thirty games, it would appear that securing just one more win should get them in. That win is just 24 hours away. Senior night for Charles Little had better be a winning one. With a victory over
Duquesne on Saturday, the Flyers will finish the regular season at 25-6 with a first round bye in the A-10 Tournament. Their RPI will be in the mid 20’s and they will have finished the season with a not too damaging 8-4 mark over the last twelve games. Their record against the top 100 in the RPI will rest at 8-3 and 2-1 against the top 25. The only real negative will be their recent road loss streak which has reached four games.
Certainly a win in the first round of the tournament will solidify their chances, but they have to be rooting for Xavier to win the tournament if they don’t. Throwing a third A-10 team in the mix will only water down their own accomplishments and they don’t need any help doing that.
The real question that needs to be answered should they get in, is how they plan on winning a game when they seem completely lost on the offensive end of the court. An area that has been a real problem all year has gotten worse since the loss of Rob Lowery.
London Warren has stepped up his production, but Lowery’s loss from the line-up has allowed teams to pack it in even more.
If the loss to Xavier pointed out anything, it was that not having an outside threat all but shuts down our inside game.
Chris Wright has become too prone to charging fouls to be able to use all of his game and he doesn’t seem content to put up a five foot jumper. Against Xavier, the shooting was abysmal from all over the court. Twelve times the Flyers put up a shot only to see a Xavier player get a hand on it. The three point shooting was a waste of time. Three for eleven isn’t going to open up the middle. For this team to survive, they need someone to step up and hit a few threes.
It is obvious that any little glitch can send this team into a tailspin. If one of the pieces is not working, the entire house of cards collapses. Over the last several weeks, it hasn’t just been Lowery on the sidelines, it has been Chris Johnson, Paul Williams and Devin Searcy. Everybody needs to be ready for tournament time.
There is no reason to believe that Saturday will not be a victory. The
Flyer Faithful will make sure of that. Duquesne is a good team and can not be taken lightly, especially considering their 8-5 record on the road. We match up well with them and they do not like to slow things down, which can only help UD. This is a game that will help define
Gregory’s time at UD. It’s sink or swim time at the Arena.