Posted by xAC  1/26/2023 11:04 am | #1 |
Next up: University of Dayton Flyers
Time: January 28, 2023; 1:30 PM
Venue: Smith Center; Washington DC
2021-22 Record: 25-5; 14-1 in A10
2023 Projection: 10th
Current Record: 3-16
OOC Record: 1-10
A10 Record: 2-6
Common OOC: Ohio (Loss)
Broadcast: ESPN+
The Dayton Flyers come into DC this weekend for a Saturday matchup with the Colonials. A year away from a dominant A10 run, this season’s version of the Flyers has fallen on hard times following the departure of Head Coach Shauna Green to Illinois of the Big Ten and the defections of two key players, Marika Cook (also to Illinois), and 6’5” Tenin Magassa (to URI). During the Flyers 1-10 OOC campaign this year, they shared one common opponent with GW, which resulted in a loss to Ohio University. Their only win came against Cedarville University of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (Division II). Although they found some early success in the A10 with victories over George Mason and Davidson, they come into DC with a 2-6 record overall in conference play.
Dayton averages 65.4 ppg on 40.3% from the field (34.3% from 3-point range) and 71.7% on free throws. Their defense allows 70.9 ppg on 40% accuracy from their opponents. Their scoring is well distributed with four players topping 9 ppg, led by Destiny Bohannon (12.5 ppg), Mariah Perez (11.4 ppg and 8.9 rpg), and Sydney Freeman (11 ppg). The Flyers tall front court, led by the 6’3” Perez and 6’2” Arianna Smith (9.0 ppg and 8.1 rpg), has helped to make Dayton the top rebounding team in the A10, averaging 41.7 rpg with a +5.2 rebound margin.
Last season’s scheduled contest with Dayton was cancelled and you have to go back to the 2018-2019 season to find the last time we beat them.
About the game:
Dayton has the kind of front court that gives us trouble—tall and strong. Their 1-10 OOC results are deceiving considering they included losses to Providence, Mississippi, Kentucky, Florida, and Toledo and were played without the services of Smith. Statistically, the Flyers’ rebounding and offensive strengths play to GW’s weaknesses. Dayton’s 34.2% 3-point accuracy ranks 3rd in the A10, just behind GW. They have been inconsistent in league play, but because of their size and talent, underestimating them would be a big mistake.
For GW, this game will come down to who controls the boards. Given the Colonials propensity for offensive lulls, it will be critical to limit Dayton’s second chance points. Taiwo will have her hands full on the defensive glass. Teammates have to step up by boxing out players like Perez and Smith, who lead the A10’s 3rd ranked offensive rebounding team. Defensively, we need to play better than in the past few games. We have to make their front court work hard for baskets, but close out on the perimeter shooters as well. The comebacks by VCU and LUC in the last two games were fueled by uncontested 3-pointers by two of the poorer 3-point shooting teams in the A10. Offensively. we have to take advantage of Dayton’s defensive vulnerabilities, where in their A10 matchups, they are allowing 72.3 points a game, the most in the conference. That means staying disciplined, running the offense throughout the whole course of the game, and taking and making good shots. When our offense devolves into one-on-one scrums in the paint, bad things usually happen. Taiwo is a more effective scorer when she doesn’t have to maneuver against a big defender to get off a shot. Innis and Taiwo had a couple of really nice pick and rolls against LUC, and we need to see more of those. Lok and Robertson seem well integrated into the offense, but lately, Taylor and Thornton seem detached. If we don’t get more production from the 8-9-10 players off the bench, our starters may continue to struggle at the end of close games.
This is GW’s chance to end our losing streak against Dayton, move up in the conference standings, and build on our progress so far this season. But just beating Dayton would be nice.
Last edited by xAC (1/28/2023 3:47 pm)
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Posted by MG14 1/28/2023 3:21 pm | #2 |
GW with a solid 71-54 win against Dayton. We hit 13 3s in this game which is pretty incredible. The women are 6-3 in conference and sit in 4th.
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Posted by xAC 1/28/2023 3:52 pm | #3 |
GW takes down the Dayton Flyers 71-57.
1st Quarter: After the early moments of the game, it was apparent that GW could have problems with Dayton’s height. At the official timeout, the score stood 8-6 in the Flyers favor. The Colonials came out strong after the break and led by Robertson’s 9 points raced out to a 21-12 lead. Innis got some key rebounds as others boxed out the taller Flyers. The defense was solid, forcing 6 TOs to help offset Dayton’s offensive rebounding.
2nd Quarter: The teams went back and forth in the early moments and Dayton took advantage of the shorter Colonials on the offensive glass to score some early second chance points. Then GW’s offense came alive, and aided by multiple defensive stops extended the lead to 36-23 at the half. At this point, Dayton held a big rebounding edge 23-14, but committing 14 TOs helped GW to overcome that advantage. Robertson led all scorers with 11 points, followed by Lakstigala with 8 and Taiwo with 6.
3rd Quarter: Brown scored 5 early points to help GW build on the lead, but some careless passes against the Dayton press resulted in easy scores and reduced the deficit 45-30. After the official timeout, Dayton hit some key shots while the Colonials hit a short dry spell. At the end of the period, GW led by a 50-41 margin.
4th: Quarter: After a slow start, GW was able to put the game out of reach and coast to a win. Clutch shooting by Robertson, who finished with a game-high 26 points, and Lok who finished with 12 points led the way. As we’re accustomed, Taiwo took care of the boards for GW with 15 rebounds against a physically gifted Arianna Smith, who finished with 8 offensive boards and 17 rebounds in total.
Good all-around game for GW, whose players had to fight and claw for every rebound and loose ball. The offense for the most part was solid and resulted in numerous good shots. GW’s 3-point shooting (13-33) was the difference in the game today. Each time Dayton looked to make a run, someone would step up and hit a clutch shot, including Webster who beat the shot clock with a 3-pointer after hustling to get the ball. Lok continues to have good games off the bench, and although Thornton didn’t get in the game, the distribution of minutes for the other players was reasonable. GW was able to outrebound the Flyers in the second half (25-22) and that was critical because Dayton would only turnover the ball 4 times after halftime.
It just feels good to beat Dayton. This game was good preparation for Duquesne, who is physically similar to the Flyers. They are tall and strong but have a better backcourt, so the tests keep coming.
Last edited by xAC (1/28/2023 3:53 pm)
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Posted by dmvpiranha 1/29/2023 12:45 am | #4 |
Another great game for WBB! I'm sure the staff tracks things like deflections every game but the number of passes that were altered by the defense today was a lot higher than in the recent past. This truly felt like the first time in a while that the defense of the past was back. I realize that Dayton is rebuilding this year, but that was good to see.
The past several games have brought up potential concerns about rebounding going into next year, but I'm still hoping that the added size up front may help. In the meantime, we thankfully have Mayowa to give us extra possessions when the team needs it. She honestly should be player of the game every game. Made shots by other players come and go, but Mayowa's rebounding does not.
Nya Robertson is so much fun to watch. I'm biased, but I think she should win rookie of the year. I figure it's probably going to go to that player from St. Joe's but I admittedly do not know who else is a contender for that award.
Faith may not have had a good shooting day, but she was key to us moving the ball really well in Dayton's zone at the top of the key. The ball movement today was the best I've seen in a while.
Good to see Essence get some shots to go in the second half. I believe that made three was just her second in conference play. She had some huge offensive rebounds as well while others were boxing out and played good defense as always.
Asjah was solid, but I'm not sure if she's the player we want taking five threes given her percentage this season. They aren't bad shots, but if there's time left on the shot clock she should drive to the hoop. She's really good at posting up.
Mia had an impressive game on both sides of the ball. I didn't realize she took 13 shots because she was making an impact defensively and as a passer, an area of her game I think that gets overlooked.
Nya Lok has consistently made positive plays when she's in the game. Her basketball IQ is very high and she has a great feel for the game, making the right passes and knowing when to shoot not to mention sliding in to get a rebound under the basket when needed. I noticed McCombs played her more in the second half today which was definitely earned.
It was good to see Taylor have a strong game - that made three on a broken play must have felt good for her. In the past, she would sometimes force a shot off an offensive rebound but she made the extra pass and finished with three assists! Also her defense was solid and she even took a charge.
GW stays home for the next two games against Duquesne and George Mason. Every game is important, but I think these next two are the most critical outside of the Davidson game. They should certainly be motivated for the GMU rematch.
