“No one wants to live a day in Ohio,” the fan shouted in the general direction of the UD bench. “Dayton is the worst city in Ohio.”
Moments later, the same fan told the Flyers, “Remember what happened when you were having your best season ever? I do.”
Until Wednesday, Dayton had not traveled to Amherst since that 29-2 season of 2019-20. Its 14th straight victory in a 20-game run to end the pandemic-shortened season took place at UMass. The Flyers did not dominate that night, winning 71-63, as they did Wednesday.
Dayton opened the second half with a 6-0 run to extend a 37-27 halftime lead and then coasted to a 72-54 victory with the offense and defense performing at a high level. This was Dayton’s fourth straight victory, third straight road victory and third straight victory at UMass after a four-game losing streak from 2013-18.
“It felt good,” Dayton guard Malachi Smith said. “It’s a good road win. We’ve got three more games left. We’ve just got to finish it out.”
Here are three takeaways from Dayton’s 28th game:
1. The victory keeps Dayton in contention for the regular-season championship: Dayton (19-9, 11-4) trails first-place Virginia Commonwealth (21-7, 12-3) by a game in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Flyers are close to clinching a top-four seed and a double bye in the A-10 tournament with a two-game lead and a tiebreaker against the fifth-place team Duquesne (19-9, 9-6).
Dayton closes the season with home games against George Mason on Saturday and La Salle on Tuesday and then a road game at Saint Louis on March 3. VCU plays home games against Richmond and Saint Louis and closes the regular season at George Washington on March 4.
2. R.J. Blakney looked healthy in his return to action: After missing the last two games and four of the last seven games, the Dayton guard played 13 minutes. He had one of the best dunks of the game in the second half and finished with four points.
“First of all, it’s great having him back,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said. “I thought he looked good. He got winded, which is to be expected. But it’s great to have him back, and I think as he gets himself back in rhythm, he’s certainly going to help us down the stretch.”
Even with Blakney’s return, Dayton played short-handed for the 27th time in 28 games because freshman guard Mike Sharavjamts missed the game with an illness. He did not make the trip to UMass.
Credit: David Jablonski
3. Dayton played one of its best all-around games of the season: UMass shot 37.5% from 2-point range. That was Dayton’s fifth-best defensive effort of the season inside the arc. UMass also shot 25% (3 of 12) from 3-point range. The Flyers have held three of their last four opponents to 25% or worse.
On the other side of the court, Dayton made 8 of 19 3-pointers (42.1%), bouncing back from a 4-of-18 performance (22.1%) Saturday in a 65-49 victory at Loyola Chicago.
Dayton also committed only eight turnovers. That’s the seventh time it has had single-digit turnovers in a game and the fourth time in the last seven games.
Judging by all those numbers, this was one of Dayton’s best performances of the season, even if it came against 13th-place UMass (14-14, 5-11), which lost its third straight home game.
“Double trouble, man,” Dayton guard Koby Brea said. “We know that the defense is always going to be there. It’s just about executing the right way offensively.”
STAR OF THE GAME
Dayton forward DaRon Holmes II scored 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting. It’s his second straight 20-point game. He had 20 points against Loyola. He’s averaging 17.7 points, which ranks fifth in the A-10.
STAT OF THE GAME
Dayton never trailed after opening the game with a 9-0 run. It’s the second straight game it has led from start to finish.
LOOKING AHEAD
Dayton plays sixth-place George Mason (16-12, 8-7) at 6 p.m. Saturday at UD Arena. The game will air on ESPNU. The Patriots will enter the game after a week break. They beat La Salle 70-56 on Saturday for their third straight victory.
SATURDAY’S GAME
George Mason at Dayton, 6 p.m., ESPNU, 1290, 95.7
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