Flyers take down SLU, prepare for St. Joseph’s showdown
Freshman guard Celeste Edwards (5) shoots during a game against the University of Richmond, Saturday, Feb. 15, at UD Arena. Dayton defeated Saint Louis University, Monday, Feb. 17, in a make up of its canceled Jan.
STAFF REPORT
The University of Dayton women’s basketball team protected its spot in the USA Today Coaches Poll by defeating Saint Louis Univeristy 90-74, Monday, Feb. 17.
The game was a rescheduled matchup after the original Jan. 5 game was postponed due to inclement weather conditions.
SLU was not able to make it from New York before the game.
The Flyers trailed by two after the first 20 minutes, but used a dominant second half, fueled by junior guard Andrea Hoover’s 20 second half points, to put away the Billikens and push Dayton’s conference record to 11-1.
In the second half, Dayton was a perfect 15 of 15 from the free throw line, shot 69 percent from the field, 60 percent from the 3-point line and outrebounded SLU by 10.
Hoover finished with a career-high 29 points.
Junior forward Ally Mallot aided Hoover with 23 points on a 3-for-4 performance from behind the arc.
Sophomore guard Amber Deane and senior center Cassie Sant also scored in double figures with 14 and 10 points, respectively.
Saint Louis would come within two points with 11:18 remaining in the half after a three from redshirt junior guard Desirae Ball, but UD went on a 10-2 for a 60-52 with 9:33 to go.
From there, the Flyers never looked back and gradually distanced themselves from their opponent, outscoring the Billikens 33-24 over the last 10 minutes.
With the win, Dayton is 16-1 in its last 17 games, including a perfect 8-0 at UD Arena since beginning the season 2-4.
In the most recent coaches poll released Tuesday, Feb. 18, the Flyers moved up to No. 22 and will carry the team’s highest ranking since Nov. 11, 2013, into a pivotal conference matchup against St. Joseph’s University at 2 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 22, at UD arena.
St. Joseph’s handed the Flyers their sole loss in the team’s last 17 games, and knocked Dayton out of the 2013 A-10 tournament in the semifinals in Philadelphia, Pa. SJU is the only A-10 team to beat UD in its last 37 regular season conference games.