Dayton Flyers will open Atlantic 10 Conference schedule at Rhode Island

All 31 games on the Dayton Flyers men’s basketball schedule for the 2021-22 season are now known. The Atlantic 10 Conference released its schedule Thursday, exactly. two months before the college basketball season begins.

The A-10 will once again play an 18-game schedule. That was the plan last season as well, though no team was able to play all 18 games and only two got to 17 games because of COVID-related cancellations and postponements.

After a historic 29-2 finish and 18-0 performance in the conference in 2020, Dayton slipped to 14-10 and 9-7 and seventh place in 2021. Two national college basketball preview magazines, Lindy’s Sports and Athlon Sports, predict the Flyers will finish fifth and sixth, respectively, this season.

Both magazines picked St. Bonaventure, Richmond, Virginia Commonwealth and Saint Louis as the top-four teams. Athlon ranked Davidson ahead of Dayton.

Here are 10 things to know about Dayton’s A-10 schedule:

1. First game: After playing 13 non-conference games, Dayton will open A-10 play on Dec. 30 at Rhode Island. That’s the longest trip Dayton makes in conference play.

Dayton blew an 18-point lead in the second half and lost 91-89 in double overtime in Kingston, R.I., last season but beat the Rams 67-56 at UD Arena and 84-72 in the A-10 tournament in Richmond, Va.

Explore» EARLIER COVERAGE: A look at non-conference schedule

2. Home opener: Dayton plays the defending regular season and tournament champion, St. Bonaventure, at UD Arena in its second A-10 game on Jan. 2.

Dayton beat St. Bonaventure 55-52 in Olean, N.Y., in the final game of the regular season. The Bonnies then won the A-10 tournament in Dayton by beating Virginia Commonwealth 74-65 on March 14.

3. Game times: Only four of the 18 A-10 games have times attached. The other times will be announced at a later date.

4. TV schedule: Dayton will play six A-10 games on the CBS Sports Network and three on NBC Universal. A Feb. 5 game at Saint Louis will be televised by one of ESPN’s stations. A Jan. 28 home game against Rhode Island will be on ESPN2. Television information for seven games has not been announced.

5. Rest time: Dayton plays twice a week for the most part but does not play between Jan. 22 and Jan. 28 and between Feb. 12 and Feb. 19.

Explore» AN EARLY LOOK: Analyzing Dayton's 2021-22 roster

6. Toughest stretch: The first three games, in a seven-day stretch, will test the young Flyers. After playing Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure, they play at home against VCU, which beat them three times last season.

7. Easiest stretch: A five-game stretch against Duquesne, George Washington, Saint Joseph’s, Massachusetts and La Salle — all of whom were picked to finish among the bottom six teams by Lindy’s — could give the Flyers a chance to build momentum in February.

8. More consistency: Dayton will play eight games on Saturdays and five on Wednesdays. Two years ago, the last time Dayton played a full 18-game schedule, the games bounced around more on different days of the week. It played three A-10 games on Wednesdays and seven on Saturdays that season.

9. Final game: Dayton will close the regular season at home against Davidson at 12:30 p.m. on March 5.

Dayton has no seniors listed on its roster, though Elijah Weaver has played three seasons of college basketball. He’s listed as a redshirt junior because last season did not count against anyone’s eligibility.

10: Conference tournament: The 2022 A-10 tournament will take place at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. It was last played there in 2018. The event returns to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.., in 2023 and 2024.