Dayton’s seniors loaded with success
For all the unprecedented success Dayton’s five seniors have achieved during their careers, coach Archie Miller relishes the steps that got them there as much as anything.
“We talked about it a lot last night,” Miller said Thursday on the eve of the Flyers’ first-round game of the NCAA Tournament against Wichita State. “There’s a lot of people that go back on those guys’ careers or our tenure together and they think about some of the tournament runs and all that stuff.
“If you really start to show some of the clips of the games that they’ve been involved with, they have been really hard-fought, ugly, find-a-way type of moments that they’ve had to come through. It hasn’t been like all this Hollywood stuff.”
In some ways, WSU will face a team much like the veteran group it graduated last season led by Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet. The Flyers are rich with experience in guards Charles Cooke, Scoochie Smith and Kyle Davis. They have an established scorer and rebounder in Kendall Pollard and an inspirational example in manager-turned-player Jeremiah Bonsu.
Dayton (24-7) will make its fourth consecutive NCAA appearance for the first time in its program’s history against the Shockers. The Flyers’ 102 victories in four seasons are the most for any Dayton senior class and include an Elite Eight run in 2014 that ended with a loss to Florida.
Cooke, a redshirt senior from Trenton, N.J., leads Dayton in scoring at 16.1 points. Pollard, from Chicago, averages 14.1 on 53-percent shooting.
“Being a strong-minded group of guys, I think it can go a long way,” said Smith, a three-year captain who averages 13.5 points and will set a school record by playing in his 138th game. “All of us here have won games in the NCAA Tournament and we know what it takes to win. Just having that, I think we’ll be fine.”
Even though the Flyers enter the tournament on the heels of losses to George Washington and Davidson, their coach’s trust is firmly entrenched. Dayton’s record this season includes five victories by five points or less and an overtime win at Davidson.
“You don’t panic as much in tough situations,” Miller said of the luxury of coaching a veteran team. “I don’t think I look at it as all glory moments. I’ve watched these guys grow up. I’ve watched them fight.
“Most of our best moments haven’t been the prettiest of games. You’re down with 30-some seconds to go and you hit a buzzer shot.”
Davis, another Chicago native, averages 8.1 points on 56-percent shooting. He exudes the confidence that Miller has come to expect from the Flyers.
“Being able to lead the team, we have the experience teaching them how to step up in big-time moments,” said Davis, whose streak of 89 consecutive starts is second only on the Flyers to Smith’s 100.
Dayton is counting on that approach to serve it well despite being an underdog to the 10th seeded Shockers. Miller’s praise for his seniors Thursday was long-lasting and heart-felt.
“You appreciate how much they’ve given of themselves in terms of effort,” Miller said. “But they really are about winning, too, and I think that’s the thing I’ll remember most about them.”
This story was originally published March 16, 2017 at 7:14 PM with the headline "Dayton’s seniors loaded with success."