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Home > Blogs > Flyer Connection: University of Dayton sports > Archives > 2009 > February > 11
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Flyers get to revel in victory over rival
A dominant performance. A thorough thrashing. A cathartic victory.
All of those phrases describe Dayton’s 71-58 pounding of Xavier on Wednesday. The Flyers led from start to finish. They wobbled a bit early in the second half when their lead was cut to two, but they pulled away beginning at the 17:10 mark and coasted to the finish, ending a six-game losing skid against their arch-nemesis.
And there were heroes aplenty. UD coach Brian Gregory went with an 11-man rotation, and all 11 players scored.
Chris Wright had perhaps his best game of the year in tying his season-high with 19 points — 17 in the second half. He also had six rebounds and three blocks. And while fans tend to grimace when Wright pulls up for a 3-pointer — he was just 6-for-27 going into the game — he knocked down a pair during the Flyers’ second-half surge.
“It was an excellent game by both teams out there, and both teams played extremely hard,” a gracious Wright said afterward. “They’ve played in a lot of big games, and they have a lot of pride. But we came out with the win, and to win in our house feels extremely good.”
It was the Flyers’ third straight win at home against a ranked team and their eighth victory in nine attempts against Top-25 foes at UD Arena.
“I credit Dayton,” Xavier coach Sean Miller said. “I thought they played well. They had some timely baskets. Chris Wright was the difference in the game. They were very quick, and they were deep, and I thought they wore us out a little bit.”
A Cincinnati columnist created a stir earlier this season when he wrote the Musketeers had out-grown the Atlantic 10. But they’ve suffered back-to-back league losses and are tied for second with UD at 8-2, trailing one-loss Saint Joseph’s.
“The message that I had for our team, that I really think is important for our basketball team, is to keep this in mind: We’ve never felt we’re bigger than this conference,” Miller said. “We just feel like we’re one of the best teams that are trying to win the conference. And no matter what conference you’re in, it’s never going to be a smooth road from start to finish.”
The Flyers’ celebration was tempered by the loss of point guard Rob Lowery. The team’s third-leading scorer suffered a knee injury midway through the first half, and he was sitting in a wheelchair with his leg immobilized afterward.
“What we know right now is he’s torn a tendon in his knee,” UD trainer Nate Seymour said.
Lowery will be examined Thursday, and surgery is likely.
How long will he be out?
“It depends on what structure is damaged, but usually … you want to keep that immobilized for four to six weeks before you start any rehab,” Seymour said.
That means the Flyers point-guard spot will be manned by London Warren and Stephen Thomas the rest of the season. And while Lowery’s loss is a blow, that duo showed against Xavier that they’ll certainly be a handful for any opponent.
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Flyers upset Xavier, 71-58
Chris Wright had 19 points and six rebounds and Marcus Johnson had 13 points to lead Dayton to a 71-58 upset of 14th-ranked Xavier on Wednesday
The Flyers (22-3, 8-2 Atlantic 10) never trailed in the game and turned a two-point lead early in the second half into a 12-point advantage with 10:55 to go. The Musketeers (20-4, 8-2) cut the deficit to seven with 7:30 to go but could get no closer.
Derrick Brown led Xavier with 17 points.
The UD win snaps a six-game losing streak to Xavier.
