Nate Santos scored 13 points and had 5 rebounds for the Flyers. (Press Pros Feature Photos By Julie McMaken Wright)
With an excellent opportunity to improve their No. 22 rankings, the University of Dayton Flyers were flat in the first 11 minutes of the game and made no baskets against No. 18-ranked Cincinnati. After falling 18 points behind, the Flyers made a run in the final sevcn minutes, creeping to within four, but lost 66-59.
Cincinnati, OH. — On an ugly scale, the University of Dayton basketball team broke about 17 mirrors Friday night in ancient and decrepit Heritage Bank Center.
Hall of famer Hal McCoy writes UD Flyer basketball exclusively for Press Pros Magazine.com.
Why 17? It was the decisive number in UD’s 66-59 loss to the University of Cincinnati.
The game was called The Simple Truth Hoops Classic and the simple truth is that the Flyers lost because they committed 17 turnovers and permitted the Bearcats to snatch 17 offensive rebounds.
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And the Flyers had only 17 points at the half.
The score sounds close and it was close despite the Flyers doing a slow walk that was close to slow snooze in the first half.
Incredibly, they didn’t score a basket, not one, until only 8:45 remained in the first half. . .11:15 without a basket as the Flyers went 0 for 9 from the field.
Nate Santos scored on a stick-back with 8:45 left in the first half, UD’s first bucket.
They did have some points — four to be exact, all on free throws — and trailed 16-4. The Bearcats erected a impenetrable defense, foring the Flyers to pass, pass, pass around the perimeter until they turned it over or launched an improbable shot.
UD’s Zed Key had his work cut out for him all night with UC’s 7-foot Aziz Bandaogo.
And the Flyers could have trailed 50-17 at the half, but UC shot no better than UD. But they had more shots due to so many offensive rebounds and UD turnovers.
UC made only 11 of 33 shots and 3 of 17 three-pointers to take a 25-17 intermission lead. The Flyers? Just 5 of 18 from the field and 0 for 7 from three.
The Flyers spent the second half in chase mode, but it was tongue-hanging time with 7 1/2 minutes left. UC’s quaintly named Jizzle Jones buried a three-point
shot that put the Bearcats in front by 18 points, 53-35.
Then it was time for UC to mimic what UD did to start the game. After Jizzle’s three with 7 1/2 minutes left, the Bearcats never hit another basket.
And UD trimmed and trimmed and trimmed, showing the moxie and resiliency they always show. The Flyers exploded on a 22-8 run and when Malachi Smith stole the ball and swished a three the Flyers were within four, 61-57, with 1:59 left.
And the Flyers came within a missed reverse layup that spun out of the basket by Santos that would have cut it to two.
But UC finished their run of eight free throws but no baskets with four freebies in the last minute to finish it off.
Despite Dayton’s doldrums to start the game, UC coach Wes Miller took note.
“That’s one helluva team we played tonight,” he said. “They were the toughest team to prepare for this year. They are the 10th best offense in the country and I’m proud of what our defense did. That team could land in the Sweet Sixteen.”
Posh Alexander driving his way to the basket.
Not if the commit 17 turnovers. Not if they yield 17 offensive rebounds. Not in they score 17 points in a half.
UD coach Anthony Grant said Cincinnati’s physicality, bordering on brutality in the first half, was the difference. The Bearcats nearly ran the Flyers out the back door and into the frigid waters of the Ohio River.
The officials seemed to take the position, “No homicide, no foul.”
“Their physicality, really on both sides (offense and defense, was really the difference in the game tonight,” said Grant after the Flyers fell to 10-3. “Their ability to create second shots (17 offensive rebounds) with physicality on the glass kind of overwhelmed us to start the game.
“And on the defensive end they were really physical because they have great size, speed and quickness,” Grant added of the 9-1 Bearcats. “We had a tough time figuring out some things offensively there in the first half.
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“I thought our guys did a good job in the second half of being able to figure it out offensively,” he said. “But we could never really solve the rebounding issue.”
UC outboarded the Flyers 38-32, with Dillon Mitchell grabbing seven, five on the offensive glass. The Flyers’ best was six by Zed Key with three on each side of the ball.
Enoch Cheeks contributed 5 points and six rebounds.
The Flyers had four players in double figures, but two scored only 13 (Santos, Smith) and two scored only 11 (Key, Posh Alexander).
Smith had an uncharacteristic off night with 4 of 12 shooting, six turnovers and four fouls. Enoch Cheeks, usually the Flyers best all-around player was nearly extinct — five points, six rebounds, three turnovers and he fouled out.
UC was led by Dan Skillings Jr., with 17 point, eight above his average. And the Bearcats’ sniper, 6-foot-8 Lithuanian Simas Lukosius, shooting 48% from three, was 0 for 6 in the first half, but he made three of six three-pointers in the second half.
Two in a row were decisive. The Flyers were within 35-27 early in the second half, poised for an early run. But Lukosius made two straight threes to lift UC to a 41-27 advantage.
So the Flyers finished their pre-confernce schedule 10-3 and Grant is happy with it, even though Friday’s loss probably will knock UD back out of the Top 25.
“We weren’t able to contain opportunities,” said Grant. “When you look at 17 offensive rebounds. . .that’s extra possessions, extra shots for them. And then 17 turnovers for us. . .like, that’s a lot.
“And yet, it was a four-point game with two minutes to play,” he said. “So we’re pretty good, too. So I’m good. We didn’t win today, but I like where we stand as we head into the conference”
That happens the day of New Year’s Eve, a 2 p.m. game against LaSalle in UD Arena.
Flyer Malachi Smith vs UC’s 7ft. Aziz Bandaogo.
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