Grant on Antetokounmpo: ‘He played really well’

Freshman has double-double in second game

Kostas Antetokounmpo shed the bulky knee brace he wore in the season opener and looked like a new man in his second game for the Dayton Flyers.

Dayton lost 72-69 to Hofstra in the first round of the Charleston Classic on Thursday, but in a season bound to include more ups and downs than usual, the 6-foot-10 redshirt freshman Antetokounmpo's performance — 10 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in 26 minutes — points to an exciting future.

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Antetokounmpo threw himself around with abandon at times, diving to the floor for a loose ball and ending up on the scorer’s table after another play. He looked healthy and strong without the brace.

“Last time, I had it because my knee was kind of hurting,” Antetokounmpo said, “but the way I strapped it on, it made me cramp in my calf, so I just took it off for this game.”

Antetokounmpo had three points in six minutes in the season opener against Ball State. He didn’t leave the court for the last 10 minutes in this game.

“I thought he played really well,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said. “The No. 1 thing he did tonight was play with great energy. He got a double-double and had four blocks, and I think he probably altered another four or five shots as well. That’s what we need out of him. I think he has a chance to change our team, and it starts for him on the defensive end.”

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Antetokounmpo said there are more games to come and he’s getting better every day. In the final minutes, as he helped the Flyers rally to take the lead for the first time, the focus was on playing hard. He heard the Flyer fans, who were thrilled by his dunks.

“I love that when I hear people yelling,” Antetokounmpo said. “That gets me going. That gets me hyped.”

RELATED: Antetokounmpo a work in progress

Earlier this season, Grant said Antetokounmpo has unlimited potential. The freshman has heard that before.

“A lot of people tell me I have potential,” he said, “but I have to keep working.”

Debut performance: Freshman forward Matej Svoboda made his Dayton debut after missing the opener with an illness. He had two points on 1-of-4 shooting and added two assists in 12 minutes.

Shooting struggles: Dayton made 6 of 22 3-pointers (27.3 percent). Through two games, it has made 10 of 38 (26.3 percent).

Strong turnout: Dayton may have brought as many fans to the arena on the first day of games as the rest of the schools combined. UD expected to have approximately 1,000 fans, and judging by the stands, that might have been a low estimate. They had to turn fans away at the pregame fan party.

This was the first time since his playing days Grant had seen the Flyer Faithful on the road.

“I’m very impressed,” Grant said. “I’m sad we weren’t able to pull it out for them. They did their part. I’m very thankful we get that kind of support home and away.”

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