“Them running the shot clock down to 10 seconds and making a move and making a play, it’s kind of a weird offense,” Dayton guard Kyle Davis said.
“It might have affected us a little mentally,” guard Scoochie Smith said. “We just have to stay focused and not let it affect how we play and just worry about ourselves a little more.”
The Flyers (12-3, 2-1) shot 30.9 percent from the field, their worst effort of the season. They hadn’t shot below 36.5 percent in their first 14 games and shot 56.7 percent Wednesday in a 93-63 victory over Massachusetts.
Dayton coach Archie Miller had his team pressing and trapping at times, trying to force the Explorers to play faster, but he said the best thing to do was just play their normal defense.
“You guard for 10 seconds, and you do a good job,” Miller said. “At one point in time with about eight minutes to go, they had three field goals in the second half. When you have three field goals in the second half, I don’t know if your offense is really working.”
Other side: La Salle (5-8, 1-2) ranked 259th in the RPI, according to ESPN's daily rankings before this victory, and last in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Dayton ranked eighth and first in the A-10.
La Salle had lost seven straight games. Three were by seven points or fewer. They lost two games to top-25 teams, Villanova and Miami, in that stretch before upsetting the Flyers.
“We beat a really good team,” La Salle coach John Giannini said. “We’re thrilled. It’s been a long time coming. This has really been a struggle for all of us, more so for the players because playing is a lot harder than coaching.”
Pollard's status: Dayton junior forward Kendall Pollard missed his second straight game with a strained Achilles tendon. He has not practiced since suffering the injury Tuesday. His status remains day to day, Miller said.
Next week: The Flyers play Davidson at 8 p.m. Tuesday at UD Arena and then host George Washington at 7 p.m. Friday.
Davidson (9-4, 1-1) lost its A-10 opener 97-85 at St. Bonaventure and then beat Duquesne 77-66 Wednesday. It hosted George Mason on Saturday night.
George Washington (12-3, 1-1) beat Fordham 69-63 in its first A-10 game and then lost 65-62 at Saint Louis on Wednesday. GW hosted Duquesne on Saturday night.
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