That's the type of fire I've been dying to see from CJ all year.
This will not be a normal recap, cause it's coming the day after the game, but I was shocked (and pumped) to look at my phone and see that Dayton had beaten Alabama by 12. It was not a game I was expecting them to win at all. But in typical Flyer fashion, UD got itself up and played a great game, winning 74-62. Maybe with that type of win, they'll put themselves back on track.
First things first: this performance by UD will be an anomaly for the rest of the season, for a few reasons. Dayton might not shoot 60 percent from the field again, will rarely shoot 50 percent from the three again, and my two keys to the game from yesterday's post actually coming through and being keys to the game will almost certainly never happen again. But it was nice for UD to out-rebound Bama (26-20) and for Chris Johnson to have by far his best game of the season (8-9 fg, 20 points) and make me look like I know what I'm talking about. The best part about CJ's game last night appears to be that of his nine shots, just four of them were threes. So even if he had an off night from beyond the arc (say 1-4) he would have finished with 14. It's pretty simple. When the guy gets inside, he scores more.
Despite the ridiculous shooting percentage, there are things UD did this game that are sustainable, some things that they are perfectly capable of continuing the rest of the season. First is the rebounding margin. They won it. And while neither team grabbed many rebounds in total (a byproduct of UD's 60 percent shooting and Alabama's 50 percent), UD won the battle on the glass. That's important. That's what they need to be doing all the time, especially when A-10 season comes around and they aren't playing teams that are as big as Alabama. The other stat that was great to see was Dayton's 18 assists on the game. Once again, this is a slightly inflated total due to the Flyers' high shooting percentage, but when a team has 18 assists, that means it was moving the ball well all game long. So whether or not the shots are dropping at such a high clip, the offense is working well. You have to be encouraged by a stat like that.
I wasn't expecting Dayton to win this came, and yet, it feels like I should have seen this coming. I mean, isn't this the way UD has been since I can remember? Play well, play poorly on the road, have a good stretch, have a horrible stretch that causes you to scratch your head and wonder why you ever thought they were any good, then win a game against a great opponent. Yeah, that sounds about right. I'm used to that. I wish I wasn't, but I am. After this Bama win, a fan can't help but wonder why Dayton couldn't play like it did against Alabama when it was playing Miami or Buffalo, because 60 percent shooting would not have been necessary to beat either of those teams, and UD would be 8-1, looking great so far. Alas, that's not the way it's been with the Flyers for a long time, and, for now, it looks like us fans are going to have to endure that inconsistency for at least one more year.
From here on out, the non-conference is pretty weak. Dayton plays USC Upstate, Florida International, Seton Hall, Illinois-Chicago and Ole Miss. UD's record in those games absolutely cannot be worse than 4-1, with the one loss allowed against a Seton Hall team that looks...not bad this year. Really, it needs to be a 5-0 stretch. Get through that, then we're into what really matters for Dayton. A huge first game against Saint Louis, the team that has dominated them in recent years. With play like last night, Dayton can continue to make it happen against all these teams.
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