Dayton Flyers: Darrell Davis takes another hard hit on blind screen

The last two games have been painful for the Dayton Flyers — but even more so for junior guard Darrell Davis.

Davis ran into a blind screen in the first half at George Washington on March 4 in a game the Flyers lost 87-81 and suffered a concussion. He didn’t return to the game. It happened again in the second half Friday in an Atlantic 10 tournament quarterfinal against Davidson. Davis ran into Davidson forward Will Magarity with 5:37 to play and didn’t return. Dayton lost 73-67 at PPG Paints Arena.

“I had a concussion the first time,” Davis said. “I don’t know if I have one now. I’ve got to go through the protocol and figure out what’s going on.”

Davis scored eight points and made both of his 3-point attempts. The Flyers, who hope to earn a fourth straight berth in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, will need him for whatever lies ahead.

After the game, Dayton coach Archie Miller wasn’t sure about the health of Davis.

“I think he said he was fine on the bench,” Miller said. “I didn’t see him. He was with the doctors and (trainer) Mike (Mulcahey). He’s getting hit pretty high on the floor with some blind screens, which are completely legal, and he’s not aware right now that they are trying to step up and get him. He’s got to do a little better job of navigating that, and hopefully he’ll be fine. I think he was good on the bench in the second half at the end of the game.”

Tense moments: Davidson star Jack Gibbs got angry in the second half after drawing a charge from Dayton's Scoochie Smith. Gibbs and Davidson coach Bob McKillop took issue with some sort of comment directed Gibbs' way by Dayton, but didn't want to talk about it after the game.

“It’s March basketball,” Gibbs said. “Things are going to get heated. It was a hard-fought game, and it was a battle. So that’s all I really have to say about that.”

Improved team: Davidson (17-14) lost five games in A-10 play in the regular season by six points or less. That doesn't count an 89-82 overtime loss to Dayton on Feb. 24.

Their stars, Gibbs and Peyton Aldridge, play almost every minute of every game, but they didn’t wear out Friday. Davidson will play No. 4 seed Rhode Island, which beat St. Bonaventure 74-63 in the second quarterfinal, in the semifinals at 1 p.m. Saturday.

“I think down the stretch of the season, we had a lot of close games and lost a couple in overtime,” Aldridge said. “I think we’re learning how to finish a game off. I know in the past, we let teams speed us up and forced us into turnovers and bad shots and that gives them run-outs on the other side of the court, so I think just kind of stay poised under pressure.”

Looking ahead: Dayton will find out its NCAA tournament fate Sunday. The 90-minute selection show starts at 5:30 p.m. on CBS.

“I’m not sure how we’ll do it,” Miller said. “We’ve got to get back in town and get organized. We’ll have our group together to watch it at some point. I’m anxious to hopefully hear our name called. I want our name to be called. I think that would be a special thing for our senior group.”

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