For the Flyers, it was much pain in the paint. They missed at least a dozen shots within a foot of the rim and they couldn’t buy a rebound with cash, check, money order or credit card.
There was much hand-wringing and head-shaking when the selection committee put Syracuse into the NCAA tournament field. Many believe the ‘Cuse should have been standing somewhere in an open field instead of being in the NCAA field.
The ‘Cuse owned only 19 wins, had lost three straight and five of six. They had the highest RPI rating, 71, of any team ever added to the tournament by the committee.
But when the Orange’s first-round game was over Friday afternoon, it was the University of Dayton Flyers doing the hand-wringing and head-shaking.
Syracuse 70, Dayton 51. The bus was warmed up for the Flyers early in the second half when they were outscored 23-5.
It was Dayton’s first first-round NCAA defeat in their last five appearances and the 51 points were the least the Flyers scored this year.
Amazingly, this came just one day after UD coach Archie Miller’s brother, Sean Miller, saw his team, Arizona, score a season-low 55 points in 65-55 loss to Wichita State.
For the Flyers, it was much pain in the paint. They missed at least a dozen shots within a foot of the rim and they couldn’t buy a rebound with cash, check, money order or credit card.
Scoochie Smith had 12 points dingon 4 of 10 shooting.
With Syracuse playing with coach Jim Boeheim’s much-publicized 2-3 match-up zone, rebounds shouldn’t have been a problem for the Flyers.
It was more than a problem. It was a deep mystery. The Flyers were outrebounded, 45-27, and one Syracuse player, Tyler Roberson, had 18 by himself, eight on the offensive boards.
And defensively, the Flyers had no answer for Syracuse freshman Malachi Richardson, who scored 21 before fouling out late in the game when there was no question about the outcome.
Richardson and Dayton junior Charles Cooke attended Trenton Catholic Academy together but it was the freshman far outshining the junior on this day.
The 10th-seed Orange led the seventh-seeded Flyers by only two points at the half, 30-28, but it appeared the Flyers went to the bus at halftime instead of returning to the floor.
Dyshawn Pierre began the second half by missing a layup, Scoochie Smith missed a ‘3,’ Kendall Pollard missed two free throws and Smith made only one of three free throws.
While all that negativity was going on, Syracuse scored nine points and continued a 23-5 run in the first 10 minutes of the second half and had the Flyers on lockdown, 53-33.
“I wish I could say it was our defense, but they missed a lot of easy shots,” said Syracuse’s Boeheim. “And we cut down our turnovers in the second half after we had 11 in the first half.”
The Flyers finished the season 25-and-8 and the good news is that four of the team’s top five scorers return next season. Only senior Dyshawn Pierre departs.
But there was no scoring from anybody on this day.
Pierre, who missed several rim-in-his-face shots, scored only six on 3 of 9 shooting and snared only six rebounds. Charles Cooke led the Flyers with 14 on 4 of 12 shooting, Scoochie Smith had 12 on 4 of 10 shooting. Freshman Steve McElvene flunked on a couple of dunks, scored six points and grabbed six rebounds in only 19 minutes, once again his time limited due to foul trouble.
The Flyers were 18 for 56 from the floor, a frigid, frozen, 32 percent. Syracuse hit 21 of 53 for 40 per cent.
All that added up to the Flyers putting their uniforms in mothballs far sooner than they hoped.
(Edited By Julie McMaken Wright)
Charles Cooke led the Flyers with 14 points in their season, and tourney-ending loss to Syracuse. (Press Pros File Photos)