Crucial free throws down the stretch helped Dayton withstand a furious rally by the George Washington Colonials in the last two minutes as the Flyers held on 82-79 before a sold-out UD Arena crowd of 13,553 fans. Ramod Marshall led the way with 23pts. The Flyers improve to 16-9 (7-5) and occupy sole possession of 5th place in the A-10 standings, helped in part by a St. Bonaventure loss to Duquesne on Saturday.

The first half was downright ugly, and the Flyers were their own worst enemy for much of the first 20 minutes. While Tom Penders’ club came out and hustled as former NFL sack master Lawrence Taylor once described as ‘a bunch of crazed dogs’, the Dayton Flyers were in a complete fog and getting out-worked at every spot on the floor. GW crashed the glass, drove to the basket, and played in-your-face defense while the home team did a lot of standing around. Luckily, the Flyers’ terrible propensity for shooting ill-advised three-pointers paid off in the first six minutes as Tony Stanley nailed three treys and Ramod Marshall added another to give the Flyers the early lead. While Dayton was ignoring the obvious strength of the team — three gifted post players shooting over .550% each — the Colonials sliced through the Dayton defense for layups, stick-backs, and blocking fouls.

While Yuanta Holland seemed uninterested in demanding the ball inside, Nate Green accepted the challenge and provided a spark as the interior game finally got on track later in the half, helped out by a couple Keith Waleskowski baskets. Getting the hint, Holland finally made a serious call for the basketball on a subsequent trip and made a move in the paint for a vintage Holland basket in the low post that no one could defend. Exactly.

The Flyer defense had few first half answers however and GW made the most of it by taking a 35-32 lead into the locker room after Dayton led by a slim margin for much of the half. GW shot nearly .500% from the field in the first frame and held a rebounding advantage as well.

Whatever the Flyer coaching staff said at halftime, it worked like a charm because after UD gave up a quick basket to start the second half and fall behind by five (37-32), Dayton quickly regained the lead on two quick treys and never looked back. Ramod Marshall had a stellar second half, scoring 21 of his 23 points in that span, many of which were free throws in the waning moments to ice the contest.

Brooks Hall had a strong performance, scoring 10pts, a career-high seven assists, six rebounds, and nary a turnover. Tony Stanley added 14pts, Nate Green a workman-like 12pts and 5rbs, and Waleskowski 10pts to go along with 4rbs and a career-high four rejections. Holland finished with 8pts and 6rbs after a slow start.

It was a tale of two halfs. The Flyers simply went through the motions in the first 20 minutes but turned things up in the second half to beat a determined GW club. While Penders’ club has struggled all season, they put forth one of their best efforts of the season and probably deserved a victory had the Flyers not made 23 of 28 free throws. Though the Flyers had 10 first half turnovers and GW 11, both teams had just two in the second half.

Without question, Dayton didn’t play a full 40 minutes and had too many mental lapses at this point in the season, but GW had a lot to do with it and looked like a postseason ballclub Saturday afternoon. Should Penders’ get the same effort in their remaining games, the Colonials will upset someone in the A-10 Tournament.

To Dayton’s credit however, the Flyers proved once again that they can win without a complete performance. This game was a must-have in a season of must-haves between now and the end of the year if UD has any hopes of an NCAA bid. It wasn’t pretty, but it was a needed victory and sometimes the ugly ones are the toughest ones to win. The winning streak is now at four games, the second longest streak of the season.

League-leading St. Joseph’s comes to the UD Arena on Wednesday before a certain sellout crowd. Get your tickets now, the Arena should be lit. The Hawks are a good club, but they aren’t great. Like Dayton last year, SJU isn’t capable of beating good teams with a mediocre effort. All of their players must play well to beat the best of the best. For the most part, this has been the case and the Hawks have won all the close contests. They are due for a hiccup however and no venue gives opposing teams in the A-10 more indigestion than UD Arena. Dayton should win this one. Whether they do or not is to be determined Wednesday night.