top of page

March Madness Dark Horses Dayton Flyers (Atlantic 10)



Introduction

 

Dayton Flyers are a powerhouse Atlantic Ten conference.  They are an elite shooting team who can go off at any moment to break a game wide open.  On top of their shooting, the Flyers do not leave a whole lot of openings and that includes through their rebounding.

 

Strengths

 

Elite Shooting

 

Dayton is one of most accurate shooting teams in all the college basketball, especially for beyond the three point arc.  They lead the A-10 from the field at over forty-seven and a half percent, which also places them just outside the top fifty in all of division one.  Their three point percentage is at thirty-nine and a half percent, which leads the A-10 by over two percentage points, and places them in the top ten in all of D1.  They are closer to D1 leading Kentucky in three point percentage and Saint Joesph, who is second in the A-10 in three points percentage.

 

Limiting Openings

 

Dayton leaves limited chances to score on them, which is why they allow fewer than sixty-four and a half points a game, fewest in the A-10 and within the top twenty in D1.

 

They have turned the ball over fewer than ten times a game (third fewest in their conference), fouled just over thirteen times a game (fewest in their conference), and surrender twelve trips to the line (third fewest in division one).

 

 

Battle Tested

 

For a non-power conference school, Dayton has faced strong teams this season.  They have beaten some tough mid major schools like Oakland, Troy, and Youngstown State.  Dayton was even taken down power conference schools like Saint John’s, LSU, and even Cincinnati while holding their own against Northwestern on the road and even Big 12 powerhouse Houston.

Weaknesses

 

Rebounding

 

One big weakness to Dayton’s game is their rebounding.  While they are good at preventing defensive rebounding, that is more because of their shooting.  They have allowed over eleven offense boards per game, two most in the A-10.

 

Dayton is below average at grabbing rebounds, average under eight and half offensive boards (third fewest in the A-10) and thirty-four and a half total rebounds (fourth fewest in the A-10).

 

Stealing and Forcing Turnovers

 

While Dayton is good at limiting chances to score, they are not good when it comes to taking possessions away from other teams.  They have stolen the ball just over five times a game and forced just oner ten turnovers a game, both within the bottom three of their conference.

 

Limiting shot opportunities

 

Dayton gives up a lot of shots inside the paint.  They allow sixty shots per game, third most in the Atlantic 10.  Their lack of preventing rebounds are a big reason for this and it will be a problem in March Madness if they face a strong rebounding team like Arizona, North Carolina, or Purdue.

 

They may be one of the best when it comes to limits points scored against them, but they need to cut down on scoring opportunities if they want to make a deep run in March Madness.

 

Dayton’s ceiling

 

Dayton is a team that could make a deep run in the March Madness.  They have the experience against good teams, hot shooting, and defense to pull off a Final Four run.  While I do not they will win March Madness, Dayton will be a threat to a lot of teams in the tournament this year.

 

 

Comments


bottom of page