Zaide Lowery, a 6-5 senior guard transfer from Marquette, led the Flyers with 16 points. (Press Pros Feature Photos By Julie Wright-Daniel)
The University of Dayton and Xavier put on an exhibition show for charity on the outdoor center court of the Lindner Family Tennis Center in front of 11,015 fans and while the Flyers lost, coach Anthony Grant saw some good things and some things that need to be addressed and fixed after their appearance in the Care Source Invitational.
Mason, OH. — The motto for Care Source is, “It’s OK not to be OK.”
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And that’s something University of Dayton basketball coach Anthony Grant can take to heart after what he saw Thursday late afternoon in wind-swept Lindner Family Tennis Center.
Playing outdoors on center court in the Care Source Invitational against Xavier, Grant’s Dayton Flyers were OK not to be OK.
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The Flyers lost, 82-76, in front of 11,015, many of whom missed the first half because traffic off I-71 on to State Route 741 moved like an escargatoire of snails.
Why was it OK not to be OK? It was an exhibition and the loss won’t be applied to UD’s record.
It was a game that afforded Grant the opportunity to assess what his team needs to work on, a game to get to know a team that is populated by six transfers and three freshmen.
And Xavier? Coach Richard Pitino has seven transfers and four freshmen that cost the Musketeers close to $14 million.
It was windy enough that one half expected jump shooters to wet a finger and stick in it in the air to see which way it was blowing before launching a down-range shot.
Landen Joseph, a 6-2 sophomore guard transfer from Marshall, scored 12, 7 of 9 from the foul line.
As Grant said, “I’ve never coached an outdoor game and the wind affected things — for everybody but No. 9. It didn’t seem to bother him.”
That would be Xavier’s Ruben Dominguez, a transfer from Texas A&M. He launched six three-pointers and buried four en route to team-high 15 points.
Said Dominquez, a native of Cadiz, Spain, “I played a lot of outdoor basketball when I was young. But this was pretty cool.”
The score was tied, 10-10, when Xavier went on a 19-2 run that gave the Muskies a 29-12 lead.
The climb back for UD was high and the Flyers nearly reached the summit several times, but they crept Xavier pushed back to large margins.
Early in the second half, the Flyers cut it to 47-42, but Xavier scrapped back in front, 55-45. UD responded by pulling to within three, 62-59.
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And with 8:15 left, newcomer Cody Peck’s stuff off a fast break pulled the Flyers within one, 64-63.
But the Muskie scored five straight to lead, 69-63, and the Flyer failed to navigate the wind and missed two three-pointers and Xavier put it away, a 77-66 lead with with three minutes to play.
Aiden Derkack made 5 of 6 shots, including his only three-point attempt, making it 12 points, with three steals and three assists.
Zaide Lowery, a 6-5 senior guard transfer from Marquette, led the Flyers with 16 points. He made 7 of 9 shots and displayed an excellent all-around game.
“Zaide, on our roster, probably has the most experience,” said Grant. “He has some gifts the way we want to play. We’ve put a lot of emphasis for him on being a leader, being a guy through his play and verbally can help some of the younger guys.
“We have a mix of six or seven guys with about a year of college basketball,” Grant added. “Zaide has played some meaningful basketball over the course of his career.”
Landen Joseph, a 6-2 sophomore guard transfer from Marshall, scored 12, 7 of 9 from the foul line, while showing aggression around the basket.
Freshman Aiden Derkack, a brother to fan favorite Jordan Derkack on last season’s team, showed the same scrappiness and hustle that describe Jordan.
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With Jordan on hand, Aiden made 5 of 6 shots, including his only three-point attempt, with three steals and three assists in only 17 minutes en route to 12 points.
Grant revealed after the game that Jordan Derkack played the last month-and-a-half of last season with a broken foot.
Tristian Ford tallied 9 points for the Flyers.
“Aiden has been a guy that for a freshman. . .sometimes the biggest adjustment for a freshman is the speed and physicality of the game,” said Grant. “That’s something that Aiden always has exuded, a part of who he is. What we saw in practice leading up to this is the way he played. He played with great energy, he was active on the glass, active in transition. He’s very mature for understanding how to play as a freshman.”
It obviously is in the Derkack family DNA.
And the returnees? Amaël L’Etang, all 7-foot-1 of him, scored only seven points and had one rebound in 17 minutes. And both baskets he made were three-pointers.
Jaiun Simon scored six points and grabbed three rebounds in 19 1/2 minutes and Malcolm Thomas contributed three points and three rebounds in 9 1/2 minutes.
Amaël L’Etang scored seven points and had one rebound.
“The thing we talked about as a team was to test where we are at this stage of our preparations for the season,” said Grant. “We wanted to see where we are and we had a chance to play 11 guys in different combinations.
“There was some good and some things we need to get better at,” he added. “To me, it’s all learning. The thing I told the guys after is, ‘ We need to handle this as a learning experience with three more weeks of preparation before we start the regular season’,” he added “So this was really good for us.”
Despite winning, Xavier’s Pitino praised the Flyers.
“The game pressure was great and the atmosphere was awesome,” he said “Dayton’s disruption took us out or our rhythm, but we did have a response. Every time they got down to about six we’d get it back to 10.
“I was worried about the elements,” he said. “You worry about condensation. The wind might have been a little bit of a factor.”
Asked if he’ like to do it again, he said, “This was great. But I’d happy if they put a roof on it.”
No way. That would take the uniqueness and the extra challenge away from what was an extremely well-run event for a super, super cause.
Jaiun Simon scored six points and grabbed three rebounds.
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