Dayton Flyers: 24-7, 15-3 in the Atlantic 10
Head coach: Archie Miller (5th season)
Players to watch: Scoochie Smith (13.5 PPG, 4.5 APG); Charles Cooke (16.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG); Kendall Pollard (14.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG)
Season recap: Dayton enters the Big Dance after winning an outright regular-season conference title for the first time in program history. In addition to taking care of business in their conference, the Flyers notched quality wins against Vanderbilt and Rhode Island in nonconference play and caught the nation's attention with a nine-game winning streak starting in late January.
But Dayton enters the tournament on shaky ground after ending the season with consecutive losses. The Flyers dropped their regular-season finale on the road at George Washington before being upset by Davidson in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 tournament.
In addition to bringing one of most experienced teams in the nation to the NCAA tournament, Dayton also boasts one of the best names in college basketball in Scoochie Smith. The guard—who was named a first-team all-conference performer—is part of a quartet of seniors looking to put the finishing touches on what has been a historic four years for the program. The Flyers have earned a tournament berth in four consecutive seasons and still boast leadership from a team that reached the Elite Eight in 2014.
How they make a run: Dayton's guards show no signs of their late-season rough patch and come out hot to put pressure on some of the top teams in the Flyers' region. With a stout defensive performance, Dayton turns to head coach Archie Miller and its seniors to carry them deep into March once again.
How they falter: The Flyers run into a high-octane offense similar to Davidson's that finds ways to pick apart Miller's defense. With Dayton behind early, the team's guards struggle to find their rhythm and the Flyers end the season with three consecutive losses.
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