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#51 Dayton Flyers
Atlantic 10
2004-05: 18-11, 10-6,
2nd West
2004-05 postseason:
none
By
Joel Welser
There were times
last year when it didn’t look like
Dayton had anything but
freshmen on the roster. The freshmen are now sophomores and a
year of experience never hurts, but the Flyers are a year or two
away from much bigger things.
Who’s Out:
Mark Jones started 28 contests and was the senior leader of the
backcourt, averaging 7.8 points per game. Trent Meacham averaged
6.4 points as a freshman last year for the Flyers before
transferring to Illinois. The absence of the backcourt duo
sounds bad, but returnees Brian Roberts, Warren Williams and
Marques Bennett are capable starters, although behind them there
is a lack of depth.
Who’s In:
Charles Little is undersized to
play the power forward, but his shot isn’t effective enough to
play the three. The 6-6, 220 pound Cleveland, Tennessee product
will most likely see minutes under the basket where he’ll cause
some excitement with his put-backs. Desmond Adedeji moves
surprisingly well for a 6-9, 270 pound center. He’ll get a
chance for minutes behind returnees Chris Alvarez and Nick
Stafford for the time being.
Who to Watch:
Despite the development of a group
of super sophomores in Brian Roberts, Norman Plummer, Jimmy
Binnie and Chris Alvarez, the leaders of this team will be
seniors Warren Williams and Monty Scott. Scott, a 6-6 forward,
averaged a team high 11.1 points and 4.6 rebounds a season ago.
He has the ability to hit the long ball and drive the lane and
does both effectively. For much of Scott’s career, he was
labeled as having potential. Last year that potential came to
fruition and any continuation on that will be a great sign for
Dayton.
Projected
Conference Rank:
There are some depth issues at the
point, but this is a team that can compete with anybody in the
Atlantic 10. The youth movement isn’t quite as youthful anymore
and that year of experience won’t go unnoticed. A 4th
place finish leaves the Flyers on the wrong side of the bubble,
but one big win could put them over the top.
Projected
Post-season Tournament:
NIT
Projected Starting
Five:
Warren Williams,
Senior, Guard, 6.8 points per game
Brian Roberts,
Sophomore, Guard, 9.2 points per game
Monty Scott, Senior,
Forward, 11.1 points per game
Norman Plummer,
Sophomore, Forward, 9.1 points per game
Chris Alvarez,
Sophomore, Forward, 3.2 points per game
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