Dayton Flyers limit St. Bonaventure star Adams to 15 points

Grant says plan was to mix up defenses against Bonnies

Dayton Flyers guard Trey Landers and St. Bonaventure star Jaylen Adams had a brief conversation in the final minutes Wednesday at UD Arena. As Dayton's Darrell Davis shot free throws, sealing an 82-72 victory, Landers and Adams leaned over, resting their hands on their knees and laughing as they talked.

Landers said Adams was joking about never getting any calls at UD Arena. Whether he did or didn’t get calls in the past, Adams dominated Dayton in his two previous games at the arena, scoring 31 points in the 2015-16 season and 35 last season. Adams wasn’t as successful in his final game against the Flyers in Dayton. He made 3 of 11 shots from the field and scored 15 points. He did most of his damage at the foul line, making 8 of 12.

Adams missed the first six games of the season with an ankle injury and played with a slight limp Wednesday. The injury didn’t slow him in previous games, however. He had 32 points in St. Bonaventure’s 98-78 victory Saturday against Massachusetts and averaged 20.1 points in his first seven games.

Dayton’s game plan in defending Adams and the Bonnies’ other top scorer, guard Matt Mobley, was to apply pressure and mix the man-to-man and zone defenses.

“I thought our guys did a really good job of understanding the game plan and having a sense of urgency,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said.

Opposing viewpoint: Mobley picked up two fouls in the first four minutes. That changed the complexion of the first half. He didn't return to the game for eight minutes. Dayton pushed its lead to 23-12 in that span and led 39-25 at halftime. Mobley then scored 24 points in the second half.

"We didn't come out to play in the first half," Mobley told the Olean Times-Herald. "I'm not really sure what it was. We didn't have energy. We weren't really talking out there. And then when you get down that much in UD Arena, it's going to be hard to come back. The first half, we stunk it up, and that was kind of the reason that we lost."

Around the A-10: Ten of the 14 teams split their first two games in conference play. Rhode Island (10-3) and Duquesne (11-4) started 2-0. UMass (7-8) and Saint Louis (7-8) started 0-2.

Duquesne followed its 70-62 victory over Dayton with another victory at home, beating George Washington 69-52 on Wednesday.

Looking ahead: Dayton plays Massachusetts at noon Saturday at UD Arena. The Minutemen lost 98-78 at St. Bonaventure on Saturday in their A-10 opener and lost 80-72 at home to George Mason (7-8, 1-1) on Wednesday.

» SPORTS TODAY: Were those the real Dayton Flyers?

UMass coach Matt McCall, one of four new coaches in the A-10, worked with Grant on Billy Donovan’s staff at the University of Florida when the Gators won the 2006 national championship. McCall also recruited Dayton point guard Jalen Crutcher to Chattanooga, but when McCall left for UMass, Crutcher was released from his letter of intent and signed with Dayton.

Dayton plays both Richmond teams next week. The Flyers visit the Spiders (3-11, 1-1) at 7 p.m. Monday and host Virginia Commonwealth (9-6, 1-1) at 7 p.m. Friday.

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