With Andy Metzler in the locker room with an apparent season-ending ACL tear and his teammates making mistake after mistake on the basketball court in his absence, one could only wonder if it could get any worse.

Virginia Tech, just 5-9 on the year and winless in the A-10 in five tries, left the UD Arena with a 73-64 overtime win before 11,661 disgruntled fans at the UD Arena. Playing inspired and aggressive throughout, the Hokies outhustled the Flyers while UD’s offense sputtered and left the home team playing from behind for much of the game.
The Flyers, losers of four straight, fall to 7-9 (2-4) while Virginia Tech improves to 6-9 (1-5).

Tony Stanley led Dayton with 22 points and played a solid game while Mark Ashman chipped in 11 points and 7 rebounds. Cain Doliboa added 11 points on 3-5 shooting from behind the arc. Other than these three players however, UD has no other offensive weapons.

The opening half started off sluggish for the home team while Virginia Tech lit up the nets in the early going as the Hokies eventually built a double-digit lead before Dayton picked up the defensive pressure and forced Tech into a few turnovers and ill-advised shots. While Dayton managed to claw its way back to a 34-29 halftime deficit, Tech’s Rolan Roberts chewed up UD’s interior for loose balls, rebounds, and tough baskets to keep his team out in front.

In the second half, the Flyers picked up the defensive pressure and quickly battled back to retake the lead just minutes into the final frame. Purnell’s club seemed to take charge with about 10 minutes left and a 46-41 lead. But as so many other games have gone this year, Dayton made numerous mistakes down the stretch while the opponent made all the clutch shots and grabbed all the important rebounds to win a closely contested game.

Andy Metzler, who gave Dayton a lift off of the bench, took heavy contact from a flying leaner in the lane and landed awkward on a knee. Metzler immediately pounded the hardwood in pain and most in attendance could deduce the injury. As a couple of teammates carried Metzler off the floor, the Kettering native gave a thumbs-up to the crowd that one would have hoped would inspire his teammates as well. Thirty minutes later, Dayton was on the short end of the scoreboard once again. Metzler, who may have played his last game as a Flyer, finished with 6 points in 9 minutes of action.

Rolan Roberts abused Dayton for 23 points and 10 rebounds while Eddie Lucas scored 18 points and grabbed 5 boards to pace the Hokies. For the game, Tech nailed 6 of 9 treys and a handful of big shots at the most critical times to help Bobby Hussey’s team pull off the upset.

Dayton shot only .362% from the floor in the contest and got outscored 12-3 in overtime. The Flyer offense has become much too predictable and void of solid chalkboard plays. Dayton’s only offensive strategies are to post up Mark Ashman or pass to Tony Stanley for a three-pointer off the curl. Having said this, UD does a poor job of screening and an even worse job at setting solid picks for teammates to get open looks at the basket.

Edwin Young failed to score a basket in what has become an ongoing saga at the point guard position. Young finished with 3 points, 6 assists, and 4 turnovers. It is becoming clear that Young does not possess the ability to take players off the dribble and penetrate in the lane for points or assists. With only a freshman to back Young up, Dayton’s woes at the present are mostly point guard-related. Unless UD gets better point guard play, improvement could be a long ways away.

Coby Turner couldn’t keep the momentum of two solid performances going as the lone Flyer senior score just 4 points on 2-10 shooting and committed 6 turnovers. To his credit, Turner grabbed a team-high 8 boards.

The Flyers travel to Pittsburgh on Saturday for a conference game against Duquesne.