“They were talking about the rivalry with Xavier,” Cheeks said, “so we kind of got a little history about that. I love things like that. It just makes the games more fun, makes it more competitive. So we try to tell the guys, ‘Listen, the game is about mental health, but let’s try to go out and get a win.’”
The game will benefit Jay’s Light, the organization created to honor Dayton coach Anthony Grant’s late daughter, and other mental health organizations and suicide prevention charities. It will be televised by Bally Sports Ohio and will also be available on ESPN+.
A year ago, before Dayton played Ohio State in another charity exhibition game, Dayton Athletic Director Neil Sullivan urged fans to “welcome and support” the Buckeyes out of respect for the nature of the game. Sullivan did not send a similar email this week — probably because there’s little chance of Dayton fans, especially the student section, not making the most of their first opportunity to boo their old rivals at UD Arena for the first time since Feb. 16, 2013.
Dayton beat Xavier 70-59 on that day in an otherwise forgettable season, remembered mostly because it was the last time a Dayton team coached by Archie Miller did not make the NCAA tournament. The Flyers reached the Elite Eight a season later and made three more NCAA tournaments before Miller left for a job at Indiana.
Archie returned to UD Arena last season in his second year at Rhode Island, and his brother Sean sat behind the Rhode Island bench to support him. On Sunday, Sean, now in his third season in his second stint at Xavier, will be in a more familiar spot. He was 2-3 against Dayton at UD Arena in his first five seasons at Xavier (2004-09) but was 5-0 in the series at Xavier’s Cintas Center and 2-0 against the Flyers in the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament.
Miller knows what to expect Sunday, even if the game won’t count in the record book. On his podcast earlier this week, he said the most difficult and vicious crowds he has ever experienced have been at UD Arena during the Dayton-Xavier game.
“I have no doubt that,” Miller said, “even though it’s October, and even though it’s for a cause and it’s an exhibition game, we’re going to experience some of that. But I think it’s going to be very valuable for us because it’s going to prepare us for the Crosstown Shootout at UC and every road game in the Big East.”
Xavier finished 16-18 last season. It was the program’s first losing season since the 1995-96 season.
Hopes are high for 2024-25, though. Xavier received the 28th-highest vote total in the Associated Press preseason top-25 poll. It was picked to finish fourth out of 11 teams in the Big East.
Injuries hurt Xavier a season ago. Two key players missed the season and both return this season for a fifth year in college basketball: fifth-year forwards Zach Freemantle (15.2 points per game in 2022-23) and Jerome Hunter (7.8).
Already this season, Xavier has bad injury news. Miller announced Monday that Lassina Traore, a 6-foot-9 senior forward who averaged 11.9 points last season at Long Beach State, will miss the season after suffering a season-ending knee injury the previous week in practice.
“Lassina was a starter on this year’s team,” Miller wrote on X (Twitter). “He had a great summer and preseason, where he improved his game as much as any player in our program. He emerged to be our team’s best rebounder, low post defender and shot blocker. He was in superior condition and became a tone setter for everything that impacts winning. There is no silver lining here for us. It now becomes our players and coaching staff’s collective responsibility to rebuild our team.”
Xavier added six other transfers in the offseason, including fifth-year guard Marcus Foster, who averaged 17.0 points per game last season at Furman; fifth-year guard Dante Maddox, who averaged 15.6 points at Toledo, and junior guard Ryan Conwell, who averaged 16.6 points at Indiana State.
Dayton has five newcomers of its own — three transfers and two newcomers — who will play in front of UD fans for the first time. The Flyers held their 15th practice of the preseason Tuesday, Grant told Lance McAlister on 700 WLW.
“So far so good,” Grant said. “I think we’ve got a good mix of guys that are experienced in our program and then some guys that are new to us but experienced in college basketball mixed with a couple of young guys and freshmen that are talented and we feel real good about. So right now it’s just a matter of them getting familiar with each other and getting more familiar with our system and the way we want to play on both sides of the ball. The guys are working hard to do that. I’m pleased so far with what I’ve seen.”
SUNDAY’S GAME
Xavier at Dayton, 5 p.m., Bally Sports Ohio, 1290, 95.7
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