“I don’t feel like we ever really got in a rhythm,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said. “I felt like the pace wasn’t the pace that we wanted. We were still really efficient from an offensive standpoint. For me, it’s about trying to figure out what buttons to push from a defensive standpoint. What we learned in Maui is that we can be really good offensively. We have to be better defensively. We have to be able to put together 40 minutes of really good defense and rebounding.”
Dayton’s offense ranks 15th in the country in adjusted efficiency, according to KenPom.com. That would be the second-best ranking in Grant’s eight seasons if it stands up, behind only the No. 2 ranking the 2019-20 team had.
The defense ranked 38th in 2020. That’s the best mark of the Grant era. This season, the defense is No. 78. That would be the third-worst mark, though it’s not far behind last season when Dayton ranked 67th in defensive efficiency.
Grant knows there’s room for improvement on the defensive side. The next chance comes at 2 p.m. Saturday when Dayton (7-2) plays Lehigh (3-5) at 2 p.m. at UD Arena. The Flyers seek their 23rd straight victory at home.
Here are 10 things to know about the game:
1. Series history: Dayton and Lehigh have played once. The Flyers won 89-71 on Dec. 5, 2009, at UD Arena.
Dayton last played a Patriot League team on Dec. 20, 2014, beating Boston University 78-62 at UD Arena.
2. Program history: Lehigh, which is located in Bethlehem, Pa., finished 14-18 last season. It has posted a losing record in three of the last four seasons. It last played in the NCAA tournament in 2012 when it upset No. 2 seed Duke in the first round before losing to Xavier.
3. Low-ranked opponent: Lehigh is No. 270 in the NCAA Evaluation Tool. It’s the third lowest-ranked non-conference opponent on Dayton’s schedule. New Mexico State is No. 277. Ball State is No. 317.
Dayton is No. 51. It started at No. 40 in the first NET on Monday but dropped after the eight-point victory against Western Michigan.
4. Common opponents: Lehigh has lost to two teams Dayton has played: 90-46 at Northwestern on Nov. 4; and 88-78 at Saint Francis on Nov. 26.
5. Slow start: Lehigh opened the season with four losses on the road to Northwestern (6-3), Georgetown (7-1), Columbia (8-1) and UCLA (7-1).
Lehigh played Georgetown close until the final six minutes when the Hoyas pulled away for an 85-77 victory. Lehigh lost 76-75 to Columbia on a free throw with no time on the clock. UCLA routed Lehigh 85-45.
6. Improved play: Since losing to Saint Francis, Lehigh has won two straight games at home: 74-69 against Marist (4-2); and 90-63 against Monmouth (1-9). Marist and Monmouth both have victories of note. Marist beat Richmond 79-72 in the second game of the season. Monmouth won 63-51 at Seton Hall for its only victory.
7. Top returners: Keith Higgins Jr., a 6-foot-4 senior guard, leads Lehigh with 17.3 points per game. He has 1,146 points in four seasons.
• Tyler Whitney-Sidney, a 6-2 senior guard, averages 11.8 points. He has 1,155 points in four seasons.
8. Top newcomer: Hank Alvey, a 6-9 freshman forward, averages 6.9 points.
9. Strengths and weaknesses: Lehigh shoots 35.1% from 3-point range. The national average is 33.1. Dayton shoots 36.4%.
• Lehigh ranks 285th in the country in free-throw percentage (66.9). Dayton ranks 128th (73.2). The national average is 71.2.
10. Odds and ends: KenPom.com gives Dayton a 97% chance of winning and predicts an 85-64 score.
• Ben Knostman, a 6-2 senior guard at Lehigh, is a graduate of Tippecanoe High School. He starts and averages 4.3 points per game.
• Lehigh coach Brett Reed has a record of 279-245 in 18 seasons. He was in his third season the last time Lehigh played Dayton.
• Lehigh played in the First Four at UD Arena in 2004. It lost 72-57 to Florida A&M.
SATURDAY’S GAME
Lehigh at Dayton, 2 p.m., WHIO-TV, 1290, 95.7
Credit: David Jablonski
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