Another Arch-Baron Cup in the books. Dayton survives yet again against a pesky Saint Louis team, this time on its home floor. Let’s get to the takeaways from the game.
Good Teams Find a Way To Win No Matter What
When you are a top 10 team in the country, you are going to get everyone’s best game no matter who you play. Dayton saw it yet again from a tough Saint Louis team that likes to play rough and tumble defense. They did that today but were also able to hit shots on offense. They were getting it done with Goodwin and French, with Javonte Perkins chipping in with 9 points as well. Still, Dayton was able to fight through it and come away with a win yet again. Good teams find ways to win, which is what Dayton struggled to do last year.
Jimmy Bell Played his Best Game of the Season
Hasahn French was out for a lot of the game with foul trouble and eventually exited the game with his 5th foul with just over 5 minutes remaining in the game. Every time he was out, Bell stepped up and played with the same tenacity as French would. Bell only had 4 points, but he pulled down 11 rebounds for the Billikens. He even had 1 block. Bell is developing into a nice player for Saint Louis.
Saint Louis Actually Hit Free Throws
The Billikens were #353 in free throw shooting percentage according to KenPom, which is the worst in all of college basketball. SLU went 10-16 from the line today, which is good for 62.5%. That is miles ahead of where they normally are. Jimmy Bell went 4-5, French went 1-2, and Jacobs went 3-4. It was truly a complete team effort today, and this really helped the Billikens stay in the game with Dayton.
Dayton’s Defense Got Better
Dayton’s defense as been as high as #38 on KenPom and this past week hit as low as #58. The Flyers have been know to get lazy during their past few games, but no room to be lazy today. Dayton played as tough as they could without playing completely to how Saint Louis likes to play. The Flyers rebounded well even though they lost that battle again by 7. SLU is a great rebounding team, so they hardly ever get beat on the glass, but Dayton played better than they normally do.
Although Saint Louis shot 49% from two and 45.5% from three, Dayton had a hand in every shot today and switched well off of screens. Saint Louis had to fight for every bucket down low with French. Goodwin was hitting everything today, finishing with 22 points. It was one of those games where the Flyers just tip their cap to the Billikens for hitting shots, but they should play defense like that every game.
Jordy Tshimanga Played His Best Game of the Year
Jordy came into the game and played tough all game. He had good finishes under the basket and ended his game with 5 points and 4 rebounds before fouling out. Anyone who has watched Dayton all year knows that it was hard for Jordy to get anything going and where he fit into this offense. It looks like Jordy found his roll today, as he is a big body who’s big frame can pull down rebounds. He matched up well against Bell and French defensively and moved his feat well. He never really got beat badly on defense and got the short end of the stick on some questionable foul calls. Dayton really needs him to build off of this performance in order to get some minutes in when Obi is on the bench.
Up Next
Dayton will take this 12 game win streak into Tuesday’s big matchup with Rhode Island, who just ran over George Washington earlier today. That should be a good one.
Saint Louis goes back home and gets a week off before they have to face La Salle at home next Saturday. This should be a better game for the Billikens and a way to get back on track after two tough losses this past week.