CINCINNATI (OH) – Dayton faces the Boston Terriers (5-6) Tuesday night at UD Arena. From 2002-2005 Boston won 85 games notching at least 20 wins every season and finishing no worse than 13-3 in the America East Conference. They played in the NCAA Tournament once and the NIT three times.

Since then the Terriers have only won 55 games, finished no higher than third place and failed to make the post-season. Sustaining momentum proved elusive for head coach Dennis Wolff, despite recruiting at a high level recently – including three straight Conference Rookie of the Year awards from 2007-2009. After a disappointing third place finish and quarterfinal loss in the conference tournament last season, head coach Dennis Wolff was fired. Wolff coached more seasons and won more games than anyone in the program’s 100-season history.

Boston was picked to win the America East for the third straight year and new head coach Patrick Chambers, an assistant to Jay Wright at Villanova, will now be in charge of meeting those lofty expectations.

Chambers inherits a veteran team with only one true freshman, but little depth. Three transfers from LaSalle, Marquette and Rider are sitting out this season leaving Chambers with only ten players on scholarship available. He uses an eight-player rotation with four starters averaging at least 32 minutes per game.

The Terriers will play predominately a three-guard line-up, but with no true point guard on the floor. They are under-sized, but rebound well as a team especially on the offensive end. They send four players to the glass making them susceptible to fast break opportunities.

Despite their lack of depth, the Terriers like to play quick and will rarely pass up a shot. Their bigs can handle the ball and shoot the three and everyone in their small-ball lineup has the green light from behind the arc. They spread the floor creating space to attack the rim. Boston is very aggressive on offense and excellent from the free-throw line.

The Terriers are a streaky team and when they are making shots and capitalizing on turnovers they can put together an extended run. However, they don’t have the shooters or shot selection to sustain those runs and they can be susceptible to long droughts as well.

Junior forward John Holland (6-5 205) is Boston’s best player and an All-Conference performer. An athletic wing in the mold of Chris Wright, he wants to attack the basket and is tough to keep off the glass. Holland can also score on the low blocks where he uses his quickness to exploit slower defenders. He averages 19 points and six rebounds per game. He’ll take the triple, but is much more effective in the paint where he can finish or get fouled.

Senior Corey Lowe (6-2 200) is a combo guard with a shooter’s mentality – think of a shorter, thicker D’Angelo Alexander from Charlotte. This season Lowe has taken as many bad shots as good ones. Too often he has a quick trigger if something doesn’t quickly present itself in the half-court. He had a great game recently against Marist making 7 of 10 three-point attempts, but is only 15 for 63 the rest of the season from behind the arc. Despite his early struggles so far, he did shoot 43% from the floor last year and 37% from behind the arc. Lowe holds the BU record for most three-pointers made in a career and is sixth all-time in scoring. He averages 14.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. He also leads the team in assists (52) and turnovers (54).

Sophomore forward Jake O’Brien (6-8 220) has a high basketball IQ, but needs to add strength to be consistently productive. He moves well off the ball and is usually in good position to score when his teammates find him, but he doesn’t finish well especially with contact. He’s comfortable on the low blocks, but isn’t strong or quick enough to score there consistently yet. O’Brien will shoot the three if left open. He’s an above average defender with excellent footwork and was the 2009 Conference Rookie of the Year.

Senior guard Tyler Morris (6-2 190) shares point guard duties with Lowe. He’s an excellent spot-up shooter with a high basketball IQ and has range beyond the arc.

Senior guard Carlos Strong (6-3 215) comes off the bench as the Terrier’s sixth man, but still averages 27 minutes per game. Strong is an unassuming and steady player, willing to defer his offense even though he should probably be taking more not fewer shots per game. He’s a ferocious rebounder and tenacious defender that never takes a play off.

Boston’s starting five are talented, but Dayton matches up well with them especially with Chris Wright and Chris Johnson on the floor. Dayton has superior depth and since both teams want to play up-tempo, the Flyers should have a decided advantage in the second half. Boston’s decision making is suspect and if the Terriers start out clanging shots early in the shot clock the Flyers will get some easy points in transition and could turn it into a rout early. Expect a ragged pace along with some outstanding plays and awful miscues on both sides.

Nobody in Boston’s lineup has an answer for London Warren’s quickness, and he should be able to impose his will defensively. Boston’s lack of a true point guard should also make it easier for Rob Lowery and Mickey Perry. The Terriers are an excellent offensive rebounding team and second chance points will be key. Like Dayton, sometimes the Terriers best offense is to throw it at the rim and go get it. Look for Boston to run the back-door alley-oop from Lowe to Holland, especially out of a timeout. Fans at UD Arena should be in for a few rim-rattling dunks from both teams.