Scrimmage impression: Dayton played Pittsburgh in a scrimmage on Saturday at Denison University in Granville. UD decided before the game not to publicize the result by releasing the box score, score or other specific details. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Panthers won the game by nine points.
“We had eight guys that played in the scrimmage,” Grant said. “Four of them were playing their first ever Division I college competition. I thought they handled it well. I thought we competed well. Certainly, there are a lot of things as a coach you look at and want to get better at and want to improve on, but in terms of what we wanted to accomplish, I thought it was a good game for us.”
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Missing player: Redshirt junior forward Ryan Mikesell didn't play against Pittsburgh. He also didn't play in an open practice the Flyers held in front of students on campus Friday. Grant said Mikesell had a sprained ankle, and his absence wasn't related to the two hip surgeries he had in 2017.
“Ryan’s good,” Grant said. “ He’s had no issues with the surgery he had. I think our medical staff’s done an unbelievable job of making sure he’s progressed in the fashion he needed to avoid any setbacks. He’s good. I think he’s looking forward to getting the year started.”
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First look: Grant expects the Flyers to practice at UD Arena for the first time since last season on Wednesday or Thursday. The arena, now two years into the three-year, $72-million renovation, opens to fans Thursday when the Dayton women's basketball team plays an exhibition game against Indianapolis. The men's team plays Capital at 7 p.m. Friday.
Rotation plans: Dayton enters the season with Jalen Crutcher as the starting point guard. Who will be his backup?
“We’ll throw Dwayne Cohill back there some,” Grant said. “We’ll throw Jordan Davis back there some. We have a variety of different guys. I think we’ve got a versatile enough lineup that we’ll have a variety of people who can help us.”
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