It was a light-hearted moment in a game devoid of drama. At nearly that same moment, in the other Atlantic 10 Conference game taking place that night, fans provided the opposite type of atmosphere.
At Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis, fans from Saint Louis and Virginia Commonwealth brawled in the stands behind the VCU bench late in the second half. The fight delayed play in a game Saint Louis won 78-69.
The incident was bad enough Saint Louis issued a statement Wednesday that read in part, “Fans are expected to demonstrate respect toward one another, officials, and team personnel. Inappropriate comments or actions directed at officials, student-athletes, coaches or team representatives will not be tolerated and are grounds for removal from Chaifetz Arena.”
It’s unlikely there will be a fight in two straight games at Chaifetz, but to have any chance at 7 p.m. Friday when they play at Saint Louis (13-8, 6-2), the Flyers (14-7, 4-4) will have to show more fight than they did Tuesday at St. Bonaventure.
Dayton decided months ago to travel straight from its game at St. Bonaventure to St. Louis. It flew from Buffalo to St. Louis on Wednesday afternoon.
“We’ll try to get them rested and get them mentally recharged,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said after the game Tuesday. “Hopefully, we’ll be ready to go.”
Credit: David Jablonski
Here are 10 things to know about the game:
1. Series history: Dayton leads the series 42-30 and has won 17 of the last 21 matchups. The Flyers swept two games from the Billikens last season, winning 70-65 at UD Arena and 100-83 at Chaifetz Arena. Dayton is 10-9 at Saint Louis since the Billikens joined the A-10 in the 2005-06 season.
2. State of the program: Saint Louis fired coach Travis Ford after last season. The Billikens finished 13-20 in his eighth and final season. He led the program to one NCAA tournament appearance during his tenure.
New coach Josh Schertz came to Saint Louis after finishing 66-40 in three seasons at Indiana State. His team was 32-7 in his final season.
3. Season summary: Saint Louis finished 7-6 in non-conference play, losing to its four highest-ranked opponents: San Francisco; Santa Clara; Grand Canyon; and Illinois State.
In A-10 play, Saint Louis is 4-0 at home and 2-2 on the road with victories at Fordham and Richmond and losses at George Washington and Virginia Commonwealth.
4. Standings update: George Mason (16-5, 7-1) won 58-53 at home in overtime against Loyola Chicago on Wednesday to maintain its grip on first place. George Mason has won six games in a row.
VCU (16-5, 6-2) and Saint Louis share second place. Dayton is one of five teams tied for fourth place at 4-4.
5. Dayton’s struggles: The Flyers have their worst record through eight A-10 games since Grant’s first season. They started 4-4 in 2018 and finished 8-10.
6. Transfer portal loss: Saint Louis lost one double-digit scorer to the portal. Bradley Ezewiro, a 6-foot-8 forward, averaged 12.0 points last season as a junior for Saint Louis and is now averaging 7.0 points for UAB.
7. Top returner: Gibson Jimerson, a 6-5 sixth-year guard, led Saint Louis with 15.8 points per game last season. He leads the team this season (17.6). He scored 26 points against VCU. He is the Billikens’ all-time leader in points (2,195).
8. Top newcomer: Robbie Avila, a 6-10 junior center, led Indiana State in scoring (17.4 points) last season and ranks second (17.6) in his first season at Saint Louis.
• Isaiah Swope, a 5-10 junior guard, ranked third in scoring (15.9) at Indiana State last season and ranks second (16.4) at Saint Louis.
9. Strengths and weaknesses: In A-10 play, Saint Louis has shot 64.9% from 2-point range. That’s the top mark in the conference.
• Saint Louis ranks 14th out of 15 teams in A-10 play in 3-point shooting percentage (30.2). Teams have shot 38.7% from 3-point range against Dayton in A-10 games. That’s the worst mark in the league.
10. Odds & Ends: KenPom.com gives Dayton an 49% chance of winning and predicts a 74-73 score. Dayton climbed from No. 65 to No. 74 in the Pomeroy ratings after losing to St. Bonaventure. Saint Louis is No. 105.
• Dayton ranks 77th in the NCAA Evaluation Tool. It is the third highest-ranked A-10 team behind No. 47 VCU and No. 71 George Mason. No. 106 Saint Louis is the seventh highest-ranked A-10 team.
This is a Quadrant 2 game for Dayton and a Quad 3 game for Saint Louis. Dayton is 2-3 in Quad 1 games, 1-3 in Quad 2, 4-1 in Quad 3 and 6-0 in Quad 4. Saint Louis is 0-2 in Quad 1, 1-4 in Quad 2, 4-1 in Quad 3 and 6-1 in Quad 4.
FRIDAY’S GAME
Dayton at Saint Louis, 7 p.m., ESPN2, 1290, 95.7
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