NCAAB Game Preview - Dayton at Saint Joseph's

Sun Jan 5, 2020 1:00 PM EST

No. 20-ranked Dayton aims to end its Philadelphia road swing in Atlantic 10 Conference play on Sunday with a sweep when it faces Saint Joseph's.

The Flyers (12-2, 1-0 in conference) cruised past La Salle in their league opener Thursday 84-58 behind 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting from forward Obi Toppin. Toppin extended his team-leading season average to 19.8 points per game and ranks 15th among all Division I players with 62.7 percent shooting from the field.

The emerging star forward was one of five Flyers to score in double figures in the blowout, a stat indicative of Dayton's success through the first half of the 2019-20 season.

"It's not just Obi Toppin," La Salle coach Ashley Howard said in his postgame press conference. "It's (Ryan) Mikesell, Trey Landers, (Jalen) Crutcher, Ibi Watson. Those guys are big-time players, and they're confident and they've got a good thing going right now. They're a great representation of the Atlantic 10."

Dayton's collective firepower and unselfishness -- the Flyers rank 13th in the nation in percentage of field goals made off of assists -- have made the team No. 3 in the nation in adjusted offensive efficiency, per KenPom.com.

The Flyers will try to exercise their outstanding team offense to a rare Philadelphia road sweep, a feat no Dayton team has accomplished since 2000. Starting the swing with a win at La Salle was an important step.

"A lot of teams have left here with a level of frustration about not being able to come out with the win. Kudos to our guys for coming in and doing what they did tonight," Flyers coach Anthony Grant told the Dayton Daily News.

The 1999-2000 campaign marked Dayton's last win at Saint Joseph's in any capacity. The 2019-20 Hawks welcome the Flyers into Hagan Arena struggling mightily, losing nine of their past 10 in the program's first season without longtime coach Phil Martelli.

Martelli won 444 games in 24 seasons as the Hawks' head coach and reached seven NCAA Tournaments. Billy Lange took over after six seasons as an assistant coach with the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers.

Saint Joseph's (3-10, 0-1) opened the A-10 slate on Thursday with an 84-52 loss at Richmond. The game ended a two-week layoff for the Hawks, who halted an eight-game losing streak Dec. 19 against William & Mary.

Ryan Daly, the Hawks' leading scorer at 19.5 points per game, posted 27 in the win over William & Mary, but managed just eight against Richmond.

Saint Joseph's is shooting below 30 percent from 3-point range as a team at 29.7, but the more pressing issue for the Hawks has been on defense. They rank No. 308 in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency, and No. 340 defending the 3-pointer.

Opponents are hitting 39.3 percent from beyond the arc against the Hawks.

Competing in a top-heavy Atlantic 10 this season may be a tall task for Saint Joseph's, but Lange told KYW Newsradio before the William & Mary win that he has been pleased with the team's resilience.

"Our guys still find a way to come here with passion every day and represent the university, and that's very important here in year one," he said.

--Field Level Media