FRIDAY’S GAME
Dayton vs. Connecticut, 2:30 p.m., ESPN2, 95.7, 1290
Chants of “We are UD” echoed throughout Coliseo Robert Clemente in the final minute. The Flyer Faithful escaped the clutches of frigid temperatures in Ohio to bask in the sun of San Juan this week, not knowing whether their vacation would include any of the magic they witnessed a year ago at the Maui Invitational or last March in the NCAA tournament.
Dayton’s fans, numbering close to 800, saw their loyalty rewarded right away. Junior forward Devon Scott tipped in a missed layup by sophomore point guard Scoochie Smith with 1.2 seconds left to give the Flyers a 55-53 victory Thursday over Texas A&M in the first round of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off.
“The play was set up for Scoochie to get a screen from Kendall (Pollard) and make a play from there,” Scott said. “My mindset as he was coming down the lane was to get on the glass no matter what. Miss, make or whatever, I just wanted to make sure I was up there. It just happened to roll my way.”
The Flyers (2-0) will play defending national champion Connecticut (2-0) at 2:30 p.m. today in the semifinals. The game will be televised on ESPN2. No. 17 Connecticut beat College of Charleston 65-57 in the second game Thursday.
Dayton overcame a lopsided rebounding margin (47-26 in favor of Texas A&M), poor 3-point shooting (2-of-18) and early foul trouble (six in the first four minutes) to improve to 8-2 at in-season tournaments in coach Archie Miller’s four seasons.
The Flyers trailed 50-45 with 3:39 to play. They ended the game with a 10-3 run.
A layup by Jalen Robinson, two free throws by Dyshawn Pierre, who led the Flyers with 14 points, and another layup by Robinson started the comeback. Jordan Sibert tied the game with 56 seconds remaining with two free throws.
Jordan Sibert blocked a layup attempt by Texas A&M’s Alex Caruso with 30 seconds left. Dayton decided not to call time-out. Smith waited until six seconds remained before driving to the basket and splitting two defenders. He almost got the layup to fall. Scott beat Texas A&M’s 6-9 forward, Kourtney Roberson, to the rebound and tipped it in with his left hand.
“No time-out, don’t let them reset,” said Miller, explaining the strategy. “We wanted to take the last shot. We were going to set a high ball screen. I think they tried to switch it the first time. When we backed it out a second time, Kendall (Pollard) did a really good job of slipping it. Scoochie crossed back and got a straight line to the basket. He had a chance to put it in. Usually in those cases at the end of the game, the second shot’s what beats you. Devon, to his credit, stuck with it and tapped one home.”
Scott finished with seven points and four rebounds. It was ironic that his offensive rebound and second-chance score won Dayton the game on a day when they were dominated in both categories. The Aggies (1-1) had 23 offensive rebounds to Dayton’s eight and outscored the Flyers 12-3 in second-chance points.
“I’ve never been in a game as a coach or really as a player where the rebounding was so lopsided,” Miller said. “It’s something we’ve prided ourselves on. It’s something we’ve been good at.”
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