The University of Dayton Flyers fell to the George Washington Colonials 95-90 in a game that resembled a track meet more than a basketball game. In front of 4,200 very boisterous fans at the Smith Center in Washington, DC, GW extended their current winning streak to 5 games, running their Atlantic 10 Conference record to 5-4 and evening their overall record at 11-11. The Flyers will now go into Saturday’s game at home against St. Bonaventure at 17-5 overall and 7-3 in the conference, having lost 2 of their last 3. The Flyers now lead GW in the West by only a 1 ½ games.

The Colonials looked like the experienced team in the last seven minutes of the game. After building a 15 point lead (60-45), the Flyers – fueled by a 10-0 run – caught GW at 72. However, GW then went on 17-7 run over the next five minutes to build a 10-point lead with 2:15 to play. Dayton committed turnovers at critical times down the stretch, and didn’t play defense the whole game. Defined by runs, the game started out well enough for UD, as the Flyers built a 6-2 lead. GW countered with a 10 point run. The rest of the half was marked by George Washington building a lead and the Flyers battling back. In the end, it was too much SirVallient Brown, as he scored 33 points on 10-17 from the field and 10-10 from the line. David Morris’ (5 rbd) 19 points and Mark Ashman’s (8 rbd) 18 points paced the Flyers, as five Flyers made it to double figures.

Brooks Hall, Tony Stanley, and Nate Green (12, 13, and 17 points respectively) also contributed double figures. The second half continued much in the same style. After trailing 42-38 at the half, Dayton eventually fell behind 60-45 before mounting the charge back into the game. But the combination of Brown, who played all 40 minutes, and Chris Monroe (20 points) was too much to overcome in the end. Mike King, back at full strength from his early season injury, contributed 13 points to the GW cause.

In the game preview, there were three things I felt the Flyers needed to do to win:

Question: What do the Flyers need to do to win, and maintain momentum heading into two colossal home games against the top teams in the East?

Answer 1: In each conference road game this year, Dayton has brought defense. The Flyers cannot continue to dig themselves double-digit holes and expect to win.

Result: The Flyers dug themselves a 15-point deficit in the second half, and allowed the Colonials to shoot 58% in the first half, and 61% for the game, 46% from 3 point land – allowing the most points all year.

Answer 2: Receive continued strong guard play from Edwin Young and David Morris.

Result: The Flyers got 19 from Morris, and 9 from Young, but the Flyers as a team turned the ball over at critical times down the stretch as the Colonials outscored UD, often leading to easy transition baskets. The pair combined for 9 assists and 5 turnovers.

Answer 3: Take advantage of GW’s interior.

Result: Ashman and Nate Green (17 pts, 4 rbd) were able to punish GW on the inside for 35 points, but it still was not enough to compensate for the 53 points Colonial’s freshmen guard combo of Brown and Monroe.