Dayton ‘back in the good graces’ with seven-game winning streak

That’s true for the Dayton Flyers, who only had one choice after a 5-5 start: win and keep winning to turn around a disappointing season. That’s what they’ve done for the last month, and it’s what they did Tuesday with an 82-58 victory at Fordham.

Of course, it’s not just that Dayton (12-5, 4-0) is winning. It has won each of its last seven games by double digits and has beaten four straight Atlantic 10 Conference opponents by an increasing margin: 12, 14, 20 and 25 points. In doing so, the Flyers have regained relevance nationally. Andy Katz, of NCAA.com, ranked them 33rd in his weekly Power 36 ranking this week.

“The Flyers are back in the good graces,” Katz wrote.

Dayton began the season ranked No. 24 in the Ken Pomeroy ratings, fell to No. 77 after the 77-49 loss at Virginia Tech on Dec. 7 and now rank No. 45, jumping 10 spots Wednesday. It jumped seven spots in the NCAA Evaluation Tool after beating Fordham, reaching No. 55.

Dayton has not trailed in three of its four A-10 victories. It outscored Fordham 12-0 in the first 6½ minutes and pushed the lead to 22-4 at the 9:12 mark. Fordham (13-4, 1-3) trailed by double digits the rest of the way and got no closer than 12 points in the second half.

“I thought, in the first half, we were really dominant on the defensive end,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said. “In the second half, they were able to make a run, cut the lead and our guys answered that run and closed the game with a run of our own. We got a great team effort and great individual performances all the way around.”

With former Dayton star Obi Toppin, now in his third season with the New York Knicks, watching from behind the bench, DaRon Holmes II delivered the best individual performance. He scored a career-high 32 points for the second time in three games, making 12 of 15 field goals and 8 of 10 free throws.

Holmes repeatedly backed down defenders in the paint as Fordham refused to double-team him. His last two baskets were medium-range jump shots, though, as he continued to show his versatility. He’s averaging 26.5 points in A-10 play and has scored 20 or more points in seven straight games, something not even Toppin accomplished in the 2019-20 season when he was the national player of the year.

“He’s been doing a great job getting to his spot and getting shots,” forward Toumani Camara said. “He’s almost unstoppable in the league. I haven’t seen anybody that can stop him more than once.”

“That’s something that we all expect,” said Dayton guard Koby Brea, who scored 12 points on 4-of-4 shooting from 3-point range in his hometown. “Every game, he’s able to dominate no matter who’s on the other side.”

Camara played only four minutes in the first half because of foul trouble and didn’t score but tallied 15 points in the second half. He made 6 of 9 field goals and landed on ESPN’s SportsCenter with the No. 1 play of the day, scoring on a tomahawk slam over a Fordham defender in the second half.

“It’s easy to get frustrated when you get in foul trouble,” Camara said. “It’s something that’s happened to me a couple of games. You just have to be able to bounce back from that, and I know in the second half I had to be more aggressive and smart on defense.”

While 15 turnovers hampered Dayton at Fordham, it continued to shoot well from 3-point range, making 6 of 14 (42.9%). It has shot 40% or better six times during the seven-game winning streak, improving its season average to 32.2.

There’s also good news off the court. Grant said guards Kobe Elvis and Malachi Smith have returned to practice and are involved in non-contact drills. Both sat on the bench and were not in uniform for the 10th straight game Tuesday.

“I feel like it’s helped with team spirit,” Camara said. “They’re two very important players on our team, and being able to see them coming back slowly, getting better and be able to start practicing with us, it means a lot to everybody.”