“How good can the Flyers be this season?”
Posh Alexander, one of five newcomers on the 13-man roster, and Enoch Cheeks, one of three returning starters, still did their best to answer that question Wednesday just before the sixth practice of the preseason.
“I’m not going to talk too much, but I know we’re going to shock the world,” Alexander said. “I know we all can’t wait to just show the talent that we’ve got and put it out on the floor. I feel like we’re going to have a great year.”
“I think our team could be really good,” Cheeks said. “I don’t want to get too ahead of ourselves, but we have a chance to do great things this year.”
Dayton finished 25-8 last season and earned its first NCAA tournament berth in seven years. It rallied from a 17-point deficit in the second half to beat Nevada for its first NCAA tournament victory in nine years. The Flyers will find out more of the outside expectations for them when the Atlantic 10 Conference releases its preseason poll Monday during the annual Media Day at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
Alexander and Cheeks are two likely starters at guard, along with forward Nate Santos, the team’s top returning scorer, and Ohio State transfer Zed Key, a fifth-year forward.
The fifth starter is harder to predict. It could be redshirt junior forward Malachi Smith, who started the season opener last year only to suffer a season-ending knee injury early in the first half. It could be Javon Bennett, who replaced Smith in the starting lineup. It could be forward Jacob Conner, who started 32 games last season at Marshall.
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
Fans who watched Hamad Mousa in the scrimmage highlight video shared by UD on YouTube.com last week wouldn’t be surprised to see the freshman from Qatar begin the season in the starting lineup. One fan, Matt Rhein, added up all the points shown in the highlights and posted the box score on X (Twitter). Mousa had 15, three ahead of the next-highest scorer, Santos.
Grant was asked for his assessment of Mousa, a 6-8 guard/forward, in an interview Wednesday at the Cronin Center.
“He’s a freshman that’s still learning what to do and how to do it and the pace that he needs to go at,” Grant said, “but he’s certainly talented.”
Grant said he’s excited about Mousa and the other true freshman on the team, 7-foot-1 forward Amaël L’Etang.
“Both of those guys as true freshmen, every day is the first time they’ve ever been through it,” Grant said. “They’re both learning. The thing I appreciate about both of them is that they have that attitude of coming every day and wanting to get better, wanting to work, and so that’s always a plus.”
Mousa committed to Dayton in May and arrived on campus in July. He played in Canberra, Australia, for the NBA Global Academy the last three years.
“He’s got great potential,” Alexander said. “He can shoot the ball really well. He’s just a great player.”
Credit: David Jablonski
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