Dayton 65 - Nova 71: Now You Know What A Top Program Looks Like.

I had a good time today and I hope you guys did too. We could spend the night talking about what got us down by 18 at one point, how we shot an irresponsible 4-13 from three point range in the first half, or how my lovely Irish waitress refused my offers to make her a blog star, but I'm going to focus on the positives. Dayton played a top 10 program, took their best haymaker, and didn't collapse. It wasn't our best game, and we certainly strayed from our game plan, but it got me out of work at 2:30 and into an over priced mid-town bar. I can't really complain. By the way, I originally typed this article in paragraph form, but Blackburn told me I was contractually obligated to use bullet points. So lets fire off a few...

• Chris Wright was out jumped on the tip off. Just sayingI really don't have any other picture to put on this post, so enjoy.. 
• Dayton was firing from three point range early and often. I'm not saying we didn't have open opportunities, but maybe we don't fall into such a deep hole if we take higher percentage shots. Luke specifically took a while to heat up and while he should be lauded for hitting threes when we were down by 18, he was missing them when we were down 4 in the first half.
• Dayton's defense looked sharp early. Their rotations and switches were smooth and quick off numerous Villanova screens, limiting their open opportunities until we started to get tired late in the first half. I can't tell if Corey Fisher ate us alive because he was so good or London's defense isn't as stout as we originally thought.
• Half of Villanova's team looked like children. I clearly am aging at warp speed.
• Let me go back to Luke real quick. The good news is he did hit 5 of 9 shots, but we shouldn't have been in position where we needed him to play 23 minutes. If Fabrizius is taking 10 shots a game, it means our offense isn't working well enough to generate points on its our own and it also means we're basically playing a man down on the defensive side. If we have to rely on Fab to hit 60% from the field to keep us in the game, we are going to be on the wrong end of a lot of close games.
• Blackburn mentioned during the preseason that our shorts were getting especially long this year and I couldn't agree more. We might as well be wearing kilts at this point. The question is, do you guys think that will help or hurt with recruiting? 
• My buddy Juice is a Nova alum and watched most of the game with me while wearing a Villanova themed Sports Jacket. It really was very impressive. Unfortunately he spent more time during the game worrying about whether or not Jay Wright's shoddy attire would negatively affect his team then the chances of Dayton pulling off the upset. I don't really blame him.
• At the twelve minute mark in the second half, Dayton was down 54-39 and I was starting to fear for the worst. I told Juice I was buying a round of Jameson to cheer myself up when he said "Don't get too down on yourself, its right about this time that we inexplicably let the other team back in the game." Dayton started a 15-4 streak that I hadn't seen since the last time I had street meat.
• This is the second time in two days that just when the game looked like it was getting away from us, we clawed our way back into it. Against two top 25 teams, that's the kind of resiliency we're going to need when we're losing by 10 to Fordham with 5 minutes left in February.
• Remember in my prediction when I told you that we might have the advantage in the post? Big Dog and Kurt combined for 2 points and three rebounds.
• This might be naive of me, but I think if you take Chris Wright off this team, we can still win about 20 games, but unless we figure out what's wrong with Marcus Johnson our team will not be in the NCAA Tournament. I know we've had three tough opponents, but he's started the season shooting 33% from the field, 0-12 from deep, 40 % from the line. That is unacceptable for a senior who has given this program three great years. I'm begging the cheerleaders to cut him off until he figures himself out. 
• From Juice, "Your coach looks nothing like Michael J. Fox." I stand corrected. He also said that he was surprised how good of a team Dayton was. He thought we were the standard back end of the top 25 team that spends just as much of the season fighting to get into the rankings as they have also thought the same thing.

I'm not happy about this loss, and I never will be happy about a loss, but this was a quality loss and the season is young. I think we have the potential to be a much better team in two months than we are now. Sunday, it looks like we'll be taking on Kansas State, our second straight game against Wildcats. What an uninspired nickname. We'll work up a preview for that game tomorrow. For now, while we have nothing to celebrate per se, we can at least drink with our heads held high. A win against KSU and we'll have left PR with what is basically the second best scenario we could have hoped for. Good night and stop drinking Natty.

Live: Dayton v. Villanova

An Interogation: Villanova University/A Preview You'll Wish You Had Skipped

I high-jacked Blackburn's schtick for your entertainment purposes. Well, not so much entertainment, but more for your informative purposes. With our big win against Georgia Tech yesterday, we gain the pleasure of taking our Catholic brothers from just outside Philly, the 6th ranked Villanova Wildcats. We got a lot to cover, and I have to go to google how to treat sun poisoning for Blackburn, and chilli overdose for Donoher. Chris from the aptly named blog I Bleed Blue and White, was kind enough to take a moment and answer some questions for us about his talented Nova squad. Chris originally struck me as the kind of guy who answered his questions while drinking a well aged merlot and reading the Catechism to a group of newly minted puppies. I was quickly proven wrong, and now have him taking a close second to Ray in my favorite blogger rankings. We discuss Nova's suave coach, their front court struggles, and how Jim Boeheim is a pussy. I answered some questions from Chris too and I'll post a link for that when it goes up later.

***Update***

Chris posted my interview with him. Feel free to give his site some traffic and tell me how wrong all my answers are.

O'Brien: The early word out of Puerto Rico is that this just isn’t Villanova’s tournament. While the whispers and rumors were just background noise in early November, Nova’s fans worst fears were validated when Jay Wright showed up to the game wearing an UNTUCKED POLO. To make matters worse, his flowing mane was lacking its usual Dapper Dan high-sheen finish. Clearly the normally best dressed coach in the country just didn't bring his A-game today. What kind of effect does Jay Wright’s appearance have on the team? Will he make this mistake again?

Chris: I was on Twitter for the game. There were at least 150 tweets from Nova fans stressing about Jay Wright's appearance. This has been a common theme for these early season tournaments with him. There's obviouslNo homo, but that is a handsome man. y a correlation between his looks and the team's play. Clearly, the players took one look at him and thought, "If Coach is gonna half-ass this, we are too." It's unacceptable in my opinion and we've already started a fund for the Puerto Rico Alumni chapter to buy him a suit for tomorrow.

Call it early-season struggles if you will, but he usually doesn't bring out the Hugo Boss look until mid-January. A damn shame too.

O'Brien: I want to ask you about the George Mason game, but I’m not sure you haven’t already blocked it from your memory. One thing I’d like answered is whether Nova Nation wants to kill Corey Fisher for going 1-14 from the field or smother him in cold, Catholic love for going 14-18 from the free throw line.

Chris: Luckily the George Mason game is still fresh in my mind, and not that Irish travesty that occurred yesterday. Don't even get me started on that. I'll start yelling at you in Gaelic while I chop down Jameson.

Back to the topic at hand -- I think I can speak for everyone when I say I didn't realize how bad the shooting stats were for Fisher. But digging deeper, he kept taking it to the hole and getting fouled. He just wasn't finishing, so it isn't as bad as it looks because as you said he had a pretty good game at the line. He had a game his freshman year at Georgetown where he was something like 2-14 from the field and WASN'T getting to the line. That was bad.

O'Brien: This match up intrigues Dayton fans, mostly because Villanova has attained what Dayton strives for. A medium sized Catholic school, set pretty much in the middle of nowhere, which perennially contends for the Final Four. Coming off such a successful 2008-09 season, what are your expectations for 09-10 beyond Puerto Rico? Do you expect to find yourself back in the Final Four, or could this be a disappointing season that is packed with expectations?

Chris: Well, we are on the outskirts of Philadelphia, not exactly in the middle of nowhere, but I get your point. The key to our success has been Jay Wright, and the overwhelming support of the school. Jay has gone to battle with the big boys and brought in top-flight recruits, and he's also turned those kids into NBA players. But ultimately, it is the team aspect that he preaches that has made us who we are. Today was a great example of that. We finished the game with three true freshman on the floor because of fouls and still got the win. That's a testament to Wright (and of course the players).

This season, I personally feel we are ranked on potential. As we saw today, we are going to have growing pains. We are not the 5th best team in the country right now. But we can be, because we have a nucleus of guys who know what it takes to get to the Final Four and a talented freshman class that is eager for success. I think because of the ranking, and last season, anything less than the Final Four will be a disappointment for us. It may be unfair, but the bar has been set. If we want to be one of the elite programs, we have to be in contention for that every year.

O'Brien: The Wildcats are already short handed in the front court with Super-Frosh Mouphtaou Yarou being sent home with a viral infection, Reggie Reading being suspended till January for selling condoms at a Catholic Institution (right?), and you’re two starting forwards fouled out today. Will this effect your already guard heavy line up in anyway?Chris Wright better find himself in this postion on Friday afternoon.

Chris: The short answer is yes. I think with the lack of depth we'll see more ball-handlers on the floor instead of the classic look.

The Yarou news may be worse than originally thought, but we won't get into that. And unfortunately for us, Redding has a little too much in common with Ricky Williams. Those two things have left us short-handed for the time-being. Yarou appeared to hurt today as all 4 of our main frontcourt guys fouled out. It looks like Taylor King is going to get the start, and he was underwhelming in that role today. George Mason took it to him and he couldn't handle it. You'll be seeing a lot of Maurice Sutton. He's skinny, but really tall and active and can make things happen on the defensive end. Also, I wouldn't be shocked to Isaiah Armwood get more PT tomorrow after his game-winner today.

O'Brien: From what I’ve seen Villanova NEVER plays zone defense. Yet, Dayton biggest vulnerability is the zone. We’ve struggled with zone sets ever since Coach Brian Gregory came to town. Will Jay Wright stay true to who he is and play to Dayton’s strength or will he attack our biggest vulnerability?

Chris: Jay Wright's most famous quote is, "Zone is for pussies like Jim Boeheim." Actually, I made that up. I may have yelled that at last year's Syracuse game. I don't really remember. You'll rarely see Villanova play a zone though. Wright likes tough, in-your-face defense and demands that his players do exactly that, or they won't play. We have seen the zone when things are going poorly in the past but to be honest I'm not even sure we practice it.

O'Brien: Prediction time. Who wins the game, or are we saved by the Rapture? 

Chris: The Rapture. I like it. That should be Scottie Reynolds' nickname. Since we both had tough games today, I'd expect both to come out and prove yesterday wasn't the norm. I have a hard time seeing us shoot so poorly two days in a row, but at the same time Dayton is a much tougher opponent than George Mason, and I'd expect a similar fight to the game today. You know I can't pick against the Cats.

Villanova wins 78-71.

Pt. II: A Preview

It's already been a long weekend in Puerto Rico. Dayton needed all 40 minutes to dispatch an immensely talented Georgia Tech squad, Donoher is having separation anxiety from Blackburn, Marcus hasn't seen a white woman in 24 hours, and I've run out of scotch. Some people would say that our trip to PR is already a success because we have a win over a ranked opponent and that's all we need. The fact is Villanova may be our last chance to take on a ranked opponent until Xavier and considering that's two months from now, who knows what can happen to them? Don't let the ham and eggers tell you that we've done enough and we're winners no matter how this game ends. We need to take this victory to cement our place on the national stage. Am I delusional? No. Did that third scotch taste weird? Yes.

Villanova is the best team we could face in the nation that will exceed our talent in every phase of the back court. They have depth, range, speed, strength and intensity that Dayton will not be able to match for 40 minutes, no matter how many subs we make. It will take every bit of talent we have to contain Reynolds and fellow guard Corey Fisher, whose disastrous day shooting from the field against George Mason will not be repeated. Marcus Johnson, King Paul the First, and London are going to have to play their best game yet to give us a shot at taking this victory. Along with the aforementioned Corey Fisher and Scottie Reynolds, Nova will have their current high scorer Corey Stokes (don't get your Corey's confused) roaming the perimeter and a pair of freshman from Jersey in Dominic Cheek and Maalik Wayns, who each played crucial roles in the come back against George Mason.

Get ready for me to write a sentence you not only will never see again on this blog, but I also regret before even typing it. Dayton may have an advantage in the post. Hold on a second, I'm going outside to buy a warm 40 from a homeless guy to get this taste out of my mouth. Villanova's front court is as short-handed as a body that washes up on a Moscow river bank.Don't make me regret this Kurt Their top recruit Mouphtaou Yarou was just sent back to the states with a possible case of hepatitis, which has yet to be definitively traced back to the local Puerto Rican night walker population, and his loss has diluted an already thin front court. Current starters Antonio Pena and Taylor King, as well as back up center Maurice Sutton fouled out of yesterdays game, leaving Nova with Jay Wright's wet dream of four guards on the court in the final seconds against GMU. If there was ever a time for the Big Dog to eat and Kurt to be acknowledged by Dayton Cheerleaders in the ghetto, it's tomorrow. I'm not even sure who's going to match up with Chris Wright. Blackburn already told you Wright's lackluster performance cost him with scouts yesterday, he really only has one last shot to steal their attention in PR.

In terms of team philosophy, Villanova will play man-to-man defense against us no matter how bad our shooting is from 15 feet. Villanova and Dayton are two teams on the same train track heading right toward each other. There's only room for one Catholic school in the top 15, and Nova will be damned if they have to change their style for a bunch of Ohio boys. If only they knew the only man more stubborn than Jay Wright is Brian Gregory.

This game will be decided at either the three point line or the free throw line. If Dayton can stop the Nova 3's and hit their own shots from the charity stripe, this is a win against a vulnerable Villanova team. This game is going to be fun fellas (and Julia), so I recommend taking the afternoon off and not risk missing what might be the high water mark for Dayton this decade. I've never pretended to be impartial and I'm not going to start now. Brian Gregory upgrades his shark's tooth necklace to a Jay Wright's tooth necklace, Marcus lets Scottie Reynolds know that he has a juvenile name, Prairie Fires are on me and Chris Wright makes himself some money.

Dayton over Nova: 75-68

Stems and Seeds

In an effort to put something up on the site, and more importantly move Donoher's self-serving wedding announcement down the page, here are some one-hitters:

• Kountry Chris Wright was named to the Wooden "watch list."  This marks the first time that a UD player has made the preseason list.  Brian Roberts was added to the list midway through the 2007-08 season.  Chances Wright wins the award?  1 in 1,000,000.  Odds that John Wooden knows who Chris Wright is?  1 in 10,000,000.  The likelihood that Wooden even knows there is a Wooden Award?  1 in 1,000,000,000. 
  
  
• For those of you already in the know, the following statement will not surprise you:  Devin Searcy is a committed Tweeter.  Devoted might be a better word.  Usually, Searcy's tweets are uplifting messages of personal affirmation that help me get through another soul-draining day at the office.  However, one of Big Dog's tweets from a few weeks ago caused me great consternation--and not for the reason you may instinctively think. Ruminate over this one loyal reader:
  
  Okay, so I am willing to go along with Searcy's assertion that a rogue police officer, fueled by sectarian rage, pulled him over because he was a "black man in a nice car."  That's fine, every John Singleton/Spike Lee movie I have ever seen has reinforced the fact that cops have a tendency to act "stupidly."  Nevertheless, my focus immediately drifted towards Searcy's description of his vehicle.  If Searcy does in fact drive a nice car, where is he getting the money? 
  
  The fact that Marcus Johnson drives a pearly white Dodge Charger only adds to the intrigue.  Now, let me state emphatically that I am not insinuating that UD is paying its players.  (Admit it, it is exciting to think that Dayton might be doling out under-the-table money.  Just like the big boys!) Still, how are they affording it?  How can MJ and Searcy qualify for a lease (I assume they lease) without a permanent job or decent credit?  Are the cars in their mothers' names?  What kind of car does Searcy drive?  Is Bucky Albers somehow involved?  I am imploring someone to provide clarity on this situation.   
   
  
• Some nice press for the Villanova Wildcats.  With a loaded backcourt and an impressive freshman class, Nova should once again battle for Big East supremacy.  The name Taylor King completely slipped my mind until I read this blurb.  I totally forgot that he had transferred from Duke and was eligible for Villanova this year.  For those of you not familiar with King's game, it begins and ends at the three-point line.  A former McDonald's All-American, King's short tenure in Durham showed both his tremendous range and questionable judgment.  To make an easy comparison, King will be Nova's Luke Fab.  (Insert your own joke here.)  At 6'7" King has the ability to stretch the floor with his outside touch and should be a factor in Puerto Rico.   
  
  
• Remember all those reports that Rob Lowery was going to be just fine, that his knee injury was almost fully recovered?  BALDERDASH!  Doog Harris reports that the Flyers might not have the team's best point-guard back in fully-operational mode until conference play:
  

  “We were always shooting for him to be ready to go and pain-free by the first game of the season — knowing he’d not be in full basketball shape by then,” UD trainer Nate Seymour said.

  “Having him playing minutes and him playing like the old Rob Lowery is two different things. It takes time. We’re hoping to have the old Rob Lowery back by the conference (in early January). Any sooner than that would be gravy.”

  The Flyers weren’t quite the same during Lowery’s absence. He was named to the Chicago Invitational Challenge all-tournament team, and he supplied the squad with swagger and much-needed scoring punch.

  UD was 22-3 with him and 5-5 without him."

• Lowery's absence obviously had a detrimental effect on last year's team.  The unfortunate consequence of Lowery's slow recovery this year is that UD plays its most vital games in the month of November.  The pressure is on London Warren and Mickey Perry to perform well against Creighton, Georgia Tech, Villanova, et al. 
  
  
• A wise reader told me to take a look at the UD women's soccer team for Hot or Not.  I willfully obliged.  The roster will not set your world on fire, but there is some unquestionable talent on the team.  My Top Five in particular order (November cannot get here soon enough):

Lord, on the off chance that I have a daughter someday, please do not let her be subjected to superficial judgments by some creepy guy like myself on the Internet.  I beg you.

Rob Lowery is making progress from a serious knee injury suffered last season, but he likely won’t be 100 percent for Dayton’s opener this year against Creighton on Nov. 14.

Puerto Rico Tip-Off Field Announced, Mostly

The field for the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic has been mostly set, as 7 of the 8 teams have been announced.  Why would you want to announce the whole field at one time?  That would make too much sense.  I am pretty sure it's symbolic, as the United States legally recognizes Puerto Ricans as 7/8 of a person now.  Progress comes slowly.  In addition to your Flyers, Villanova, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas State, UAB and George Mason will be participating in the tournament.  According to our man Doog, the eighth and final team will come from the SEC. 

This is an excellent way for Dayton to get out of the gate next season.  The tourney is comprised of teams even your senile Grandma,  the one that lost all of her money investing in a dog-fighting training video series, has heard of.  UD will play three games, regardless of wins and losses.  Taking a quick look at the field, it appears that the Flyers will have the advantage against most of the competition, as the other squads will either be rebuilding or still on the proverbial rebound.  At first glance, Nova and Georgia Tech would appear to be the two most complete teams going into next year.  The Wildcats lose three senior starters and possibly Scottie Reynolds, but still return plenty of talent in the back court and a recruiting class that probably cost a lot of money.  Tech will return two starters and bring in all-everything recruit Derrick Favors for his first and only collegiate season.

However, just like your aforementioned Grandma, the Flyers will be experienced and deep.  This tournament reminds me of the Maui Invitational UD won back in 2003, in the sense that the tournament is winnable (define that how you will) and probably not the strongest Tip-Off field in recent memory (2008's field had five tourney teams: Xavier, Memphis, Missouri, Virginia Tech and USC).  Regardless, if I close my eyes I can already see Marcus Johnson holding the MVP trophy and my girlfriend bailing me out of a San Juan jail for punching a police horse in the head.  Its decapitated head.  If you can rub two nickels together then you should try to join me in America's sassiest unincorporated territory, even if you don't think you can resist the siren song that is Ohio in late November.