The Flyers return to Ohio craving some much-needed home cooking. They have stumbled away from Dayton — not looking too much like the road warriors seen early on. With that said, UD remains atop the Western Division sporting a well-deserved 17-5 record, 7-3 in Atlantic-10 play. The St. Bonaventure Bonnies enter UD Arena with a 13-6 mark, lodged firmly behind Temple in the A-10 East. While it may seem like the Bonnies are sliding, they’ve simply encountered the same problem Dayton has—winning close games on the road. St. Bonaventure has dropped four of its last six games by a total of 21 points, including an unusual loss at home — to Fordham.

The importance of this home stand is undeniable. Dayton needs quality wins — more importantly — they need conference wins. After leading the division by as many as three games, George Washington sits just 1.5 games out of first place. The Colonials helped their cause on Wednesday with a 95-90 victory over the Flyers.
To be successful Dayton needs to cure some ills from Wednesday. Sure, these ills normally show up on the road, but if not treated properly, lead to mandatory bed-rest in March. Defensively, the Flyers did an awful job guarding the 3-point line, allowing GW to shoot 46%. Guards Tim Winn and David Messiah Capers of St. Bonaventure can light it up from long range. Although the Bonnies don’t take a lot of 3-pointers, UD Arena has seen it fair share of unexpected shooting clinics.

Offensively, they must take care of the basketball. Once again, Dayton churned out more turnovers than assists, often leading to momentum-killing transition baskets. The Bonnies come in averaging 9 steals per contest, among the conference leaders.Like the Flyers, the Bonnies field a balanced scoring attack. Four players average better than 10ppg and another pair just shy of double-digits. While the Flyers have taken nearly 250 more shots than the Bonnies, the men from Olean, NY, have made the most of their opportunities — leading the Atlantic-10 in FG% (.450). Nate Green and Mark Ashman encounter a formidable front-line in 6-9 Caswell Cyrus(12.8ppg) and 6-11 Peter Van Paassen(10.3ppg). Cyrus has been a solid performer for the Bonnies. Paassen has struggled lately, totaling up 11 points in his last three outings.

Defensively, Van Paassen and Cyrus face a three-pronged scoring threat in Green, Holland, and Ashman. Dayton’s red-hot center has poured in 41 points in the past week. Nate Green had an impressive game in his hometown on Wednesday, scoring a career-high 17 points on 8-10 shooting.

Dayton continues to receive consistent contributions from David Morris and Brooks Hall. Hall is proving that he can take care of business at both ends of the court, and Morris is giving Flyer fans a glimpse into a very promising future at the point. Along with Tony Stanley and the resurgent Edwin Young, this foursome will need to hit their stride if the Flyers expect an invitation to the NCAA tournament. Fortunately for the Flyers, some of their problems which haunt them on the road seem to disappear at home. Dayton nailed just 4-19 from 3-point land at GW, but often hit four in a row at home without any trouble. They will need every bit of their home court advantage to overcome the Bonnies.

While somewhat down, the Bonnies are definitely not out. Jim Baron’s squad will venture into UD Arena on Saturday with a sense of urgency. The Bonnies have moved from being an NCAA lock to an NCAA bubble team in just two weeks.

On the flip side, Dayton can ill-afford to squander an opportunity at home. Three of the final six conference games are at UD Arena. At 17 wins, everything is critical, especially at home and with Temple coming in on Thursday.

Tip off is set for 7:30pm and will be carried on the Atlantic-10 Network via Fox Sports Ohio.