By Paul Casey Gotham
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Early in Saturday’s first Atlantic 10 semi-final University of Dayton head coach Brian Gregory implored his players: “You got to have a little fight.”
After fending off an upstart squad from the University of St. Joseph’s, the Flyers will need to find a little more fight for Sunday’s championship game.
Senior’s Chris Johnson and Chris Wright led a spirited effort as the Dayton Flyers defeated the St. Joe’s Hawks 64-61 in semi-final action at the Boardwalk Hall.
Wright’s back-to-back dunks midway through the second half sparked a 9-0 run as the Flyers took command of the game.
The senior forward grabbed a Langston Galloway miss, hit Josh Parker with an outlet and ran the middle of the floor. Parker returned the favor and led Wright for the one-handed flush.
On the next trip down the floor, Parker came from the blind side and swiped Idris Hilliard on a double-team in the post. Wright reacted quickly to get ahead of the pack, and Parker rewarded his teammate’s effort with a lead for a thunderous two-handed dunk.
Dayton’s defensive pressure continued to cause problems for the Hawks.
C.J. Aiken tried to slip a high ball screen with Carl Jones, but Luke Fabrizius intercepted the pass and led the break. Two passes later, Devin Oliver connected with Fabrizius for a catch-and shoot 3.
Wright capped the run with two free throws, and the Flyers led 54-41.
“I thought the key stretch was that 6-7 minute stretch in the second half where we really defended well and played with great energy and got some really good offensive possessions out of our defense,” commented Dayton head coach Brian Gregory. “They gave us the 11-point lead, and we were able to hang on there at the end.”
The Hawks closed the gap to two, but the Flyers hit 4-of-6 from the free throw line in the game’s final minute.
“We did a good job of getting the ball to our free-throw shooters,” Wright explained. “We just got to go out and knock them down.”
Dayton grabbed a nine-point edge in the first half.
Johnson’s catch-and-shoot 3 pointer gave the Flyers an early 6-2 lead.
Langston Galloway answered for the Hawks with a layup in traffic from the right side.
Gaining the advantage from their frequent substitution pattern, the Flyers turned the game into an end-to-end affair. Wright led an early 9-2 run.
Josh Parker found Brandon Spearman with a diagonal pass in transition. Spearman put the ball to the floor with one dribble before finding Wright under the basket for a reverse layup. One trip later, Wright kept the ball moving in reversal for a Johnson layup. Spearman made it 13-6 owhen Wright relocated the ball from the post for a 3-pointer.
Juwan Staten finished a drive from the left side, and Oliver followed with his own from the left on the next trip.
Wright threaded a pass along the baseline to Johnson for a trey from the right corner. Wright’s free throw on the next possession gave the Flyers a 21-12 advantage.
Wright finished with 17 points, 15 rebounds and five assists. Johnson had a game-high 19 on 4-of-7 shooting from behind the arc.
Galloway led the Hawks with 16 points and nine boards. Hilliard added 15, and Jones chipped in 11.
With the loss, the Hawks fall to 11-22.
Dayton improves to 22-12 and advances to Sunday’s A10 final with the Richmond Spiders.
The appearance in the finals is the third for Dayton. The Flyers won the 2003 title and lost the following year in the championship game.
“You’ve got to have faith in yourself coming into a tournament like this,” Wright said. “To be playing in the championship game on Sunday, that’s what you came for.”
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