Jan. 19, 2005
Dayton Flyers (9-5, 2-1 Atlantic 10) vs. Saint Joseph's Hawks (7-6, 4-0 Atlantic 10)
Wednesday, January 19, 2004 • UD Arena • Dayton, OH
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The University of Dayton men's basketball team returns home Wednesday to play the team that is in first place in the East Division of the Atlantic 10 Conference. Dayton (9-5, 2-1 A-10), currently in second place in the league's West Division a half-game behind GW, will take on Saint Joseph's (7-6, 4-0 A-10). Game time is 7:00 p.m. EST. UD has won three straight, while the Hawks have won four in a row. St. Joe's has also won 21 straight A-10 regular season games.
Dayton was 24-9 last season, winning the EA Sports Maui Invitational, the A-10 West Division and reaching the NCAA tournament for the third time in five years.
With one of the youngest teams in the nation (eight freshmen, and 12 players in their first or second college seasons) it's no surprise that two-thirds (67.9%) of Dayton's points and rebounds (67.0%) are coming from those 12 players. For example, at Duquesne on Jan. 15, 55 of UD's 71 points were scored by first-or-second-year players, including all three double-figure scorers. UD has had five games this season (including three of the last four) where all three double figure scorers were youngsters. Monty Scott leads the team in scoring (11.9 ) and rebounding (5.0). Freshman Trent Meacham leads in assists (3.1). Eleven Flyers are averaging at least 12 minutes a game.
On the other end of the experience spectrum, senior Mark Jones (the only senior on the squad) is tied for third on the team in scoring (9.0). He leads the team in minutes (24.1), is second in steals (13) and third in assists (2.0).
UD started three freshmen -- Chris Alvarez, Brian Roberts, Nick Stafford -- against Cornell. It was the first time UD started three rookies since the 1986-87 season.
The University of Dayton got at least seven points from six different players, including double-digit efforts from freshmen Norman Plummer (12), Brian Roberts (12) and Trent Meacham (11), to beat the Duquesne Dukes 71-60 Saturday in Pittsburgh. Monty Scott and Chris Alvarez were UD's top rebounders (eight apiece) and Warren Williams led in assists with five.
Probable Starters
Pos No. Name HT YR. PPG RPG APG NOTES
F 1 Monty Scott 6-6 So. 11.9 5.0 1.0 Career-high 25 pts vs. Duquesne 1/5
F 21 Norman Plummer 6-7 Fr. 9.0 4.9 0.4 A-10 Pre-season All-Rookie Team
C 5 Nick Stafford 6-8 R-Fr. 2.4 2.3 0.2 Started last three games at center
G 14 Mark Jones 6-1 Sr. 9.0 3.9 2.0 A-10 Pre-season Third Team
G 11 Warren Williams 6-0 Jr. 7.6 2.1 2.8 Career-high 17 points on 21st BD
Key Reserves
G 2 Brian Roberts 6-2 Fr. 9.4 2.9 1.4 A-10 Rookie of the Week 12/19
G 10 Trent Meacham 6-3 Fr. 7.1 2.0 3.1 A-10 Pre-season All-Rookie Team
G 15 Logan White 6-4 Jr. 1.0 0.3 0.0 First points of season @ Vandy
F 22 Marques Bennett 6-4 Jr. 4.0 3.4 0.8 `04 UD Defender of Year
F 32 Chris Alvarez 6-8 Fr. 2.6 4.1 1.1 Prep All-State and All-League
F 33 Jimmy Binnie 6-6 Fr. 3.0 2.6 0.5 Iowa AAAA Player of Year
C 44 James Cripe 6-11 So. 2.4 1.4 0.0 Back 1/5 vs. Duq after 7 games out
Head Coach: Brian Gregory - Second Year at UD (33-14)
Head Coach Brian Gregory
Second-year head coach Brian Gregory led Dayton to a 24-9 record last season and the 2004 Atlantic 10 West Division Championship. The Flyers advanced to the Atlantic 10 Championship Game before making their second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. Gregory is the only coach to lead his team to the Maui Invitational championship in his first season as a head coach.
Stories The Stats Tell
Six different UD players have led the team in scoring this season. Monty Scott has led four times...Ten have led in rebounding. Norman Plummer has led four times...UD has outrebounded 12 of 14 opponents this year...Six Flyers are averaging more than one offensive rebound a game...Dayton has four players averaging double figures in A-10 play...In road games, Brian Roberts is averaging 11.3 points (tops on the team) and 4.8 rebounds (3rd).
Series Stuff
The Flyers lead the series with Saint Joseph's 12-9, and have won three of the last four meetings. The St. Joe's won last year's game 81-67 on February 11 at Hawk Hill en route to the Hawks' perfect regular season. Both teams have won three times in the six games between the two played at UD Arena, and the Flyers have won the last two--76-73 in the A-10 semifinals played at the Arena on March 14, 2003; and 66-56 on February 15, 2003. UD Arena is also the site of one of the greatest wins in St. Joe's history-the 49-48 NCAA Second Round win over DePaul on March 13, 1981.
Three-Point String
UD has made a three-pointer in 479 straight games, which is the ninth longest streak in Division I. Through games of January 18, UNLV had made at least one in its last 584 games, followed by Vanderbilt (583), Kentucky (554), Arkansas (532), Duke (530), Western Kentucky (520), Princeton (508), North Carolina State (483), Dayton (479) and Charlotte (473). Only Vandy, UNLV and Princeton have hit a trey in every game since the three-point line was added in 1986-87.
Strength of Schedule
The Flyers' four non-conference losses were to teams with a combined record of 45-17 (games through 1/18). UC is 14-2 and ranked in the top 25 (13th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, 18th in AP), Vanderbilt is 11-6, Eastern Kentucky is 10-5 and DePaul is 10-4.
Dayton An NCAA Tournament Regular UD has made 13 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including the past two seasons, and three of the last five. UD has also been rather successful in its previous trips to the NCAA's, making it to six Sweet Sixteens and the 1967 Final Four.
UD A Proven Winner
The Flyers are one of just 17 teams to earn 20+ wins in each of the last five seasons. Dayton is one of an elite group of Arizona, Creighton, Duke, Florida, Gonzaga, Illinois, Kansas, Kent State, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, Stanford, Syracuse, Texas, Utah State and Xavier.
Top Fifty Flyers
Dayton entered the 2004-05 season as one of the Top 50 Division I schools in all-time wins. UD is 48th with 1,328, one behind Michigan State and nine shy of Minnesota (games through 1/18).
Eye 75 On The Scoreboard
The Flyers are 11-1 under head coach Brian Gregory when they score at least 75 points. The only loss was January 5's 94-93 double overtime loss to Duquesne. In contrast, UD is 20-13 when scoring less than 75 points in the last two years.
Close Calls Under Gregory
Dayton is 12-5 in games decided by five points or less at the end of regulation under second-year head coach Brian Gregory. In fact, three of those losses came at the buzzer (two on the road) and the other two are in double overtime.
Did You Know?
UD won more games than any other school in both the 1950s and `60s. UD won 435 games between 1950 and 1969 and ranks among the top teams of the 1950s and 1960s in Division I history. The Flyers' .763 (228-71) winning percentage in the 1950s ranks fifth in the decade. Their .729 (207-77) winning percentage ranks eighth in the decade of the 1960s. Dayton holds a 103-45 (.696) record since Jan. 1, 2000.
Traveling In Style
For the first time this season, Dayton will travel to all but two of its away games by charter plane. Other than bus trips to Duquesne and Xavier, UD will charter to all other away games to limit the amount of time spent away from campus and missed class time. To help defray costs, selected donors will be offered the chance to join the Flyers on the trips.
Jones Named To A-10 Preseason Third Team
Senior guard Mark Jones was named to Atlantic 10 Preseason Third Team at the Conference's Media Day on Nov. 4. Jones averaged 9.1 ppg and 2.5 apg last season for the Flyers who are picked to finish third in the A-10 West Division behind George Washington and Xavier by the A-10 coaches and media.
A Senior Moment
Guard Mark Jones is the only senior on the UD roster. He is tied for third on the team in scoring (9.0), leads in minutes (24.1), and is third in assists (2.0). He played just eight minutes and did not start against Cornell, due to the flu. He is one of seven players on the roster who at various times during the first week of January came down with what coach Brian Gregory dubbed the "Flood Flu." It was the first time in three seasons Jones did not start (with the two exceptions of the 2003 and 2004 Senior Days when he stepped aside for D.J. Stelly and Greg Kohls). Jones has reached double figures six times in 2004-05. Against Northwestern State, Jones scored 12 points in a nine-minute second-half stretch that took UD from four down to five up. In the Akron win, Jones scored the first eight points of a UD 10-0 run that brought the Flyers from nine down early in the game. Last year's winner of the Uhl Family Endowed Scholarship and Alex Schoen Memorial Free Throw Trophy, Jones finished the 2003-04 season ranked second on the team in assists, fourth in scoring and rebounding and was Dayton's top perimeter defender.
Monty, Monty, Monty
Second-year forward Monty Scott was named as one of the "top breakout candidates for 2004-05" by CBSSportsline.com. He's started breaking out after the first of the year, scoring a career-high 25 points in a career-high 40 minutes against Duquesne, and recording his first career double-double (10 points and career-high 12 rebounds) in the Cornell win. All ten of his points vs. the Big Red came in the second half. The only player to start every game this season for UD, he leads the Flyers in scoring (11.9) and rebounding (5.0), and is second in minutes (24.0), FG% (.450, 59-131) and 3-pt. FG% (.397, 25-63). He's scored double figures in eight games this season. He scored 18 points (17 in the first half) in the TSU win. He led UD with 14 points and a career-high-tying eight rebounds at DePaul, and led the Flyers with 14 points (6-12 FG) vs. EKU. Last season, Scott earned A-10 Rookie of the Week honors coming off the bench and scoring a then-career-high 20 points (8-10 FG, 2-2 FT) in UD's win over Temple on Jan. 10. Scott won the 2003-04 Thomas M. Luppe Memorial Award, which is given annually to the team's best first-year player.
Putting It On The Line
Eight of UD's 11 players who have attempted a free throw this year are shooting .700 or better, led by Trent Meacham's (.895, 34-38). James Cripe is shooting .833 (5-6), followed by Jimmy Binnie (.818, 9-11), Mark Jones (.805, 33-41), Monty Scott (.767, 23-30), Warren Williams (.757, 28-37), Marques Bennett (.750, 12-16) and Brian Roberts (.737, 28-38).
Will-ing His Way Into The Lineup
Junior Warren Williams celebrated his 21st birthday on January 12 with 17 points (6-8 FG, 3-5 3-pt., 2-2 FT) and eight rebounds (both career highs, and both leading the team) in the win over Richmond. He is second on the team in assists (2.9) this season. In the 2004-05 opener (and his second career start) he had eight points and a team-leading and career-high-tying five assists against EKU. He scored ten points (8-11 FT), including four straight free throws in the last 1:21 to clinch the NW State win. He had ten points (all in the second half) and matched his career highs in assists (5) versus Akron. He also had five assists at Vanderbilt and at Duquesne. Williams shared UD's Chris Daniels Most Improved Player Award with Marques Bennett last season.
Bennett A Big Contributor
Junior Marques Bennett came off the bench to tally a career-high 12 points and then-career-high eight rebounds and lead UD to its first win of year over Coppin State. He upped his rebound best to nine against Duquesne. He also had four steals vs. Duquesne. Against Texas Southern, he had six points, five rebounds and two steals in 18 minutes. For the season, he is third on the team in 3-pt. FG% (.385, 10-26). He has eight steals in his last four games (including 4 vs. Duquesne, 3 vs. Cornell in back-to-back games) and converted the last one against Cornell into his first career dunk. Last season, he shared UD's Chris Daniels Most Improved Player Award with Warren Williams. He was also named the team's best defender. Last season, he scored a then-career-high 11 points at then-undefeated Saint Joseph's.
For Cripe's Sake
Redshirt sophomore James Cripe returned to the lineup for the Duquesne game after missing seven games with a bruised hamstring. Cripe scored seven points (3-3 FG, 1-1 FT) versus Duquesne. Cripe is the tallest player on the Dayton roster at 6-11. Last season, he sparked UD with a career-high nine points (4-4 FG) last year in the win over Xavier.
And You Are....
Dayton has one of the nation's youngest teams with eight newcomers to the roster this season. Coach Brian Gregory's regualr rotations have at least three freshman on the floor nearly 50% of the time. UD's five signees from last season make up the core of a recruiting class that ranked as high as 17th in the country. The group of Chris Alvarez, Jimmy Binnie, Trent Meacham, Norman Plummer and Brian Roberts were ranked 20th as a group by PrepSpotlight and 29th by Hoopscoop. That group joins true freshmen William Brady and Joaquin Thomas as well as redshirt freshman Nick Stafford.
Recognized Rookies
Flyer newcomers Trent Meacham and Norman Plummer were both named to the Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Rookie Team at the conference's media day on Nov. 4 in Philadelphia. The duo joined a group of four others that were selected by the A-10's coaches and media.
Familiar Freshmen
UD freshmen Jimmy Binnie and Trent Meacham played together before they arrived in Dayton. They were teammates on the Iowa-based Martin Brothers Select team that was the 17-and-under AAU National Runner-up in 2003. In the fall of 2003, they were Co-MVPs of the "Hoops in the Heartland" tournament.
Meacham Makes His Mark
Freshman guard Trent Meacham has come off the bench to score double figures in four of the last five games. He had 10 at Vanderbilt, a career-high 13 vs. Duquesne, 11 in the Cornell win and 11 again at Duquesne. He has led UD in assists eight times this season, and leads the team in that category (3.1). After having four assists and five turnovers in the opener, he has gone better than 2-to-1 in A/T ratio (35 assists, 17 turnovers) since. He also scored 10 points at DePaul. He had a team-high five assists (against one turnover) and piloted the Flyers down the stretch in the Coppin State win. He also had six assists in the Akron win. He had four assists against one turnover in the Richmond win.
Believe In Binnie
Freshman forward Jimmy Binnie scored nine points in the first half of the Coppin State win, and then was shut down as Eagle coach "Fang" Mitchell resorted to a box-and-one defense when Binnie was in the game. Binnie also had seven boards vs. CSU. He had four points, three rebounds and three assists in the Akron win. Binnie had six points and five rebounds vs. Cornell. After not getting any assists in the first seven games, he has had six in his last five. He is shooting twice as well from three (.333, 9-27) than from inside the arc (.167, 3-18).
Above Normal Norman
Rookie forward Norman Plummer was the first Flyer freshman to start in his first college game since Tony Stanley did so in 1997. After scoring just four points in the first two games, he scored 22 in the next two. He leads UD in FG% (.473, 44-93), is second in rebounding (4.9), is third in minutes (23.3) and tied for third in scoring (9.0). In the Texas Southern win, he had his first career double-double (10 points, 11 rebounds). He scored 19 points in the Akron win, leading all scorers in the game. He has scored double figures in the last three games--12 points (4-6 FG, 4-5 FT) vs. Cornell, 14 in the Richmond win and 12 at Duquesne. He led the team in scoring in the Cornell and Duquesne wins.
B-Rob B-Good
Freshman guard Brian Roberts is the Flyers' top scorer off the bench (and second overall), averaging 9.4 points a game. He has had seven double-figure games (four in his last five)--10 in his first college game vs. EKU, 11 in the Wyoming win, 14 points (with five rebounds) at Saint Louis, a team-high 13 points and career-high eight rebounds at Vanderbilt, a career-high 17 points vs. Duquesne, 14 vs. Richmond and 12 at Duquesne. In UD's four road games, he leads the team in scoring (11.3) and is third in rebounding (4.8). He was A-10 Rookie of the Week on 12/19.
You Can Call Me Al-varez
Freshman forward Chris Alvarez led UD in rebounding (9) in the EKU game, making him the first freshman to lead Dayton in rebounding in his first college game since Ryan Perryman had 15 against Howard in 1994. Alvarez is third on the team in rebounding (3.8). At Vanderbilt, he scored a career-high eight points and six boards. He had eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks in the TSU win. At Duquesne, he had seven points and eight rebounds. He started each of the two exhibitions for the Flyers, and started seven straight games after James Cripe's injury.
Staf'ford' Tough
Redshirt freshman Nick Stafford had a big hand in the Wyoming win, getting seven points and seven rebounds (tops on the team) off the bench. He played 24 minutes, (nine more than he had in the season's first four games). The game before against #24 UC, he grabbed three rebounds and scored his first collegiate point. Versus Texas Southern, he had five points, three rebounds and two blocked shots in 14 minutes. He had four points, three rebounds and two blocked shots in 15 minutes in the Akron win. He has started the last four games, and had two points, four boards, an assist, a block and a steal against Cornell.
UD Inks Two Recruits For 2005-06 Season
University of Dayton men's basketball coach Brian Gregory and his staff continue to make a national impact on the recruiting front with the signing of their second recruiting class. Both Flyer recruits -- 6-9, 260-pound center/power forward Desmond Adedeji (pronounced ADD-ah-dee-gee) from DeMatha High School in the Washington, DC area, and 6-6, 220-pound forward Charles Little from Cleveland (TN) -- signed National Letters of Intent. "Our adding Desmond and Charles completes a two-year recruiting cycle for us," Gregory said, "filling the roles of a versatile big man and a powerfully athletic wing player. In these past two classes we have added just about every type of player a team needs." DeMatha is currently 12-1 and ranked #1 in DC and 13th nationally. Cleveland is 15-6 so far this season.
A Diverse Dayton Roster
The Flyer basketball program boasts (counting the fall signees) 18 players from ten different states. Five UD players hail from Ohio, and two are from Illinois and Maryland. One player each is from Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, New York and Tennessee.
Atop The A-10
UD leads the Atlantic 10 (games through 1/18) in three-point field goals made per game (7.43). The Flyers are also second in the league in FT% (.729, 226-310), FG% defense (.404, 292-722) and fewest turnovers per game (12.8), and third in turnover margin (1.00) and A/T ratio (1.05). Monty Scott is 21st in scoring (11.9), tied for 18th in rebounding (5.0), seventh in 3-pt. FG% (.397, 25-63) and 11th in three-pointers per game (1.79). Trent Meacham is 13th in assists (3.07) and fifth in A/T ratio (1.65, the best mark among A-10 freshmen). Among freshmen, Meacham is second in assists, and Norman Plummer is second in rebounds (4.9). In A-10 games only, Meacham leads in FT% (10-10) and Plummer is tied for first in offensive rebounds (4.00).
Dayton A National Leader In NCAA Graduation Rate Report
The University of Dayton was listed as one of the nation's leaders in the 2004 NCAA Division I Graduation Rates Report. UD tied for 15th nationally in the four-year average at a rate of 81 percent. Dayton was also tied for 19th in the one-year average with an 84 percent graduation rate. The report also noted that every one of the 229 scholarship student-athletes that entered the University of Dayton from 1988-89 to 1997-98 and completed their eligibility at UD have graduated.
UD Arena - A Home Court Advantage Like No Other
The Flyers have been winning at an above average rate at UD Arena ever since the building opened on December 6, 1969 when UD defeated Bowling Green, 72-70. Dayton holds an all-time winning percentage of .716 (428-170) at home. UD has defeated a ranked team on Tom Blackburn Court 22 times.
We Were First
UD one of only two only colleges in the country using LED boards across the scorer's table. UD has had its boards since the beginning of the season. North Carolina is the other, debuting its boards just after the holidays. (Kind of like the airplane--Started in Dayton, then used in North Carolina). The LED boards are the next step up from the now-popular rotating signs many schools now use. Made by Daktronics, the 32-foot-long screen can display stationary signage, animation, and even pre-recorded video.
Flyer Faithful
For years, UD has claimed it has had the best fans in the nation. In 2001, The Sporting News conducted an unscientific poll of college basketball coaches, media and SIDs. In the January 8, 2001 issue of the magazine, UD's fans were tabbed as college basketball's best. Close to 300 of the "Flyer Faithful" made the trip to Maui last season to watch UD win the Maui Invitational. Duke's Cameron Crazies got a taste in 2002-03 when about 500 Flyer fanatics followed the team to Durham, the most visiting fans at Duke in over 20 years. UD Arena has 72 sellouts in its 34-year history. UD's last 81 regular season home games have had an attendance of at least 11,000 fans. In the last 13 years, 99% of UD's home games have drawn at least 10,000 (319 of 322), including the last 119 regular season games. For the entire 2003-04 season, Dayton was ranked 25th in attendance with an average of 12,597 fans per game.
Tourney Town
The NCAA Division I Tournament will make its start at UD Arena this season for the fourth year in a row. The NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee has announced that the University of Dayton Arena will host the NCAA Opening Round Game in 2005 and 2006. UD has hosted the game since its inception (in its current form) in 2002. Dayton will also be a First and Second Round site for the 2006 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship. When the 2006 NCAA Tournament is over, UD Arena will have been an NCAA site in 20 of the last 37 years and will have hosted 72 NCAA Tournament games. That will make UD Arena the third-most prolific NCAA Tournament venue behind Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City (83) and the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City (81).
Dayton to Host 2005 Las Vegas Classic
The University of Dayton Arena will also serve as one of the four early-round hosts for the 2005 Las Vegas Classic on December 17 and 19. The Flyers will host two early round games before the entire eight-team field heads to Las Vegas for the final two games on December 22 and 23. The LVC is currently the only exempt tournament that guarantees four games to all of its participants. This year's field included #1-ranked Illinois and #18 UC.
Atlantic 10...Neither Atlantic, Nor 10...Discuss Amongst Yourselves
The Atlantic 10 Conference will become an even less accurately-named league, but an obviously-improved conference in the 2005-06 season when Saint Louis and Charlotte join the A-10. The addition of the two schools from C-USA will bring the A-10 membership total to 14. In men's basketball, UD and Saint Louis met for the 33rd time this season, while Charlotte and the Flyers have only played each other once, in the 1977-78 season. With the additions of Charlotte and Saint Louis to the Atlantic 10 in 2005-06 season, the A-10 has adopted a new scheduling model for men's basketball. Instead of divisions, the teams will play in one 14-team league race with each school playing each other once and an additional game against three opponents. UD will play its extra games against Charlotte, Saint Louis and Xavier.
Follow UD Online
All UD home and selected away regular season games can be followed live online with Gametracker. The live stats will be available along with season statistics, box scores, game stories and photos at the newly-designed www.daytonflyers.com.
Upcoming Schedule
UD remains home Saturday, to take on La Salle at 8:00 p.m. EST. The Flyers then go on the road for five of the next six games, starting at Rhode Island on Thursday, January 27.
#1 Monty Scott • So. • F • 6-6 • 220 • Reynoldsburg, OH/Reynoldsburg HS Douglas Lamont "Monty" Scott brings athleticism and a good shooting stroke to the court for the Flyers. He leads Dayton in scoring (11.9) and rebounding (5.0). He is the only frontcourt Flyer to start every game in 2004-05 and has scored at least seven points in every game this season. He had a career-high 25 against Duquesne, and had his first career double-double with 10 points and a career-high 12 rebounds in the Cornell win. All 10 of his points vs. Cornell came in the second half. He led the Flyers with 14 points (6-12 FG) against EKU, added 11 (4-8 FG) in the Coppin State win, and again led with 14 (and eight rebounds) at DePaul. He scored 18 (17 in the first half) in the Texas Southern win. He also had 12 at Saint Louis. He scored 11 vs. NW State, with nine coming in 66 seconds on three straight threes. Scott had some explosive games that provided evidence of that potential last year. Exhibit A was the 20-point effort he had in the Temple win. Not only did he establish then-career highs in points (20) and minutes (31) in the game, but he clinched the four-point win with a pair of free throws with 9.0 seconds left. After Scott sat out the 2002-03 season to focus on academics, he opened his college career with three straight double-digit games, scoring 11 points at Pepperdine, 11 in the Maui opener vs. Central Michigan and 10 in the Maui semis against San Diego State. As a senior at Reynoldsburg High School in 2002, Scott was named Third Team All-Ohio Division I, averaging 18.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.2 blocks and 2.1 steals a game. He was named to the Columbus Dispatch Super 5, and the Columbus Suburban News Super 12. He led his team to a 19-4 record and the district finals.
#2 Brian Roberts • Fr. • G • 6-2 • 175 • Toledo, OH/St. John's HS Brian Roberts is UD's top scorer off the bench, and third overall (9.4). He is averaging 12.6 points and 4.2 rebounds and shooting .525 (21-40) FG and .478 (11-23) in the last five games. Ironically, the only game in that stretch he did not score double figures in was his start of the Cornell game, replacing a flu-ridden Mark Jones. In this five-game run, Roberts established career-bests in scoring (17 in the double OT loss to Duquesne) and rebounding (8 vs. Vanderbilt). He was named A-10 Rookie of the Week for the week ending December 18 after scoring a team-high and then-career-high 14 points in the Saint Louis win. He had six free throws in the last 1:40. He scored ten points off the bench in his college debut vs. EKU. In high school, Roberts was the 2004 Ohio Division I Co-Player of the Year after guiding Toledo St. John's High to the state championship game. Roberts had a 70-11 career record in his three seasons as his team's starting point guard. In addition to reaching the 2004 state finals, TSJ was ranked #5 in 2003 and #1 in the state in 2002. His teams reached the Ohio Elite 8 in 2002, the state final semifinals in 2003, and the title game in 2004. He was a three-time Associated Press All-Ohio selection (honorable mention, third team, and first team in 2004).
#5 Nick Stafford • R-Fr. • F/C • 6-8 • 210 • Springfield, MA/Worcester Academy Nick Stafford brings quickness and jumping ability to the post position. So much, in fact, that he might be the best jumper ever to play inside for UD. He has started the last four games. Stafford had three blocked shots vs. Richmond, and has seven of his season's nine in the last six games. He came off the bench with a huge effort in the Wyoming win. He played 24 minutes (15 more than he played previously this year) and had seven points and seven rebounds. Against UC, he had three rebounds and his first college point. He blocked two shots in 14 minutes in the TSU win. Versus Akron, Stafford had four points, three rebounds and two blocked shots in 15 minutes. He had his first career start against Duquesne. He was a unique mid-year recruit in 2003-04. A 2003 graduate of Worcester Academy, he joined the University of Dayton basketball program on December 18. After graduating in June and not getting his eligibility initially approved by the NCAA Clearinghouse, Stafford filed an appeal. When the appeal was granted, Stafford was cleared to play NCAA Division I basketball and signed with UD. Stafford was a three-year starter for Worcester Academy where he played for former Dayton assistant coach Mo Cassara. Stafford was the team captain of the 2002-03 Worcester team that went 25-4, won the New England Prep School championship, and was ranked #2 in the nation among prep schools. He averaged 10.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks a game for Worcester and shot 48% from the floor. As a junior, Stafford played alongside Craig Smith (now at Boston College) and Jarrett Jack (now at Georgia Tech).
#10 Trent Meacham • Fr. • G • 6-3 • 185 • Champaign, IL/Centennial Trenton Meacham gives the Flyers an end-to-end point guard who can not only lead his team and run the offense, but be the offense, if needed. He has scored in double digits in four of the last five games, including a career-high 13 in the Duquesne game on January 5. He leads the team in assists (3.1) and FT% (.895, 34-38), and leads A-10 freshmen in A/T ratio (1.65). He is perfect from the line in A-10 play, and has made his last 20 overall. He has come off the bench to lead UD in assists eight times this year, including a career-high six in the Akron win. He's scored 10 points twice on the road (DePaul and Vanderbilt). He had seven points (5-6 FT) and four assists against EKU in his first college game. He led UD with five assists (against one turnover) in the Coppin State win, guiding the team the last eight minutes of the game at point. Against Texas Southern, he had six points and four assists. Meacham and Flyer teammate Jimmy Binnie were first teammates on the Iowa-based Martin Brothers Select team. They closed out their AAU careers by leading Martin Brothers to the 2004 Senior Boys (19-and-under) AAU national championship in June. Meacham scored 33 points in the final game. The year before, they were runners-up at the AAU 17-and-under nationals. At Centennial High School in Champaign, Illinois, Meacham averaged 18.1 points, 5.6 assists and 4.0 rebounds a game as a senior. He shot 79 percent from the line, 60 percent from the field and 46 percent from three-point range. He was chosen First Team All-Illinois by the Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette. He was also All-Area Player of the Year and Big 12 Conference MVP. He led his team to 22 wins in 2003-04.
#11 Warren Williams • Jr. • G • 6-0 • 195 • Gaithersburg, MD/DeMatha HS Warren Williams shared UD's Chris Daniels Most Improved Player Award with Marques Bennett last season. He has started all 14 games at point this season, and is second on the team in assists (2.9). Williams gave himself quite a birthday present against Richmond. On the day he turned 21, he turned in career highs in points (17) and rebounds (8), while shooting 6-8 FG, 3-5 3-pt. and 2-2 FT. He also had one of his best overall games in his career against Akron, with ten points (all in the second half), five rebounds and five assists. He had ten points in the Northwestern State win, and hitting four game-clinching free throws in the game's last 1:40. He had eight points and five assists against EKU. He has matched his career high in assists (five) four times this year, including at Duquesne. Last season, he scored a career-high 16 points (6-7 FG, 4-5 3-pt.) in just 15 minutes vs. Temple, and had five assists. Williams came to UD from renowned DeMatha High School in Hyattsville, Maryland where he led his team to its second consecutive Washington Catholic Athletic Conference and city basketball championships.
#14 Mark Jones • Sr. • G • 6-1 • 180 • Taftville, CT/Norwich Free Academy Mark Jones played just eight minutes and did not start in the Cornell win due to the flu, and has only scored ten points in the three games since. At Vandy, he had 13 points, sharing team honors with Brian Roberts. He has scored 17 points in the last two home games of the 2004 calendar year (including 12 points in an eight-minute stretch that took UD from four down to five up vs. NW State and eight straight points with UD down nine early vs. Akron). He had 14 points and six rebounds vs. TSU, 10 and five (with five assists) in the Wyoming win, and a team-high 12 points vs. #24 UC. He opened his senior season with nine points and six rebounds vs. Eastern Kentucky. He is second on the team in scoring (9.4) and third in assists (1.9). He earned the Alex Schoen Memorial Free Throw Trophy, improving more than 100 percentage points (.661 to .766) from his sophomore year to his junior year. He also was named the 2004-05 winner of the Uhl Family Endowed Scholarship. Jones was named the winner of the 2003 Chris Daniels Memorial Award, which goes annually to the team's most-improved player. The 2001 Connecticut High School Player of the Year, Jones is the first player from Connecticut to play for UD.
#15 Logan White • Jr. • G/F • 6-4 • 180 • Chagrin Falls, OH/University HS Logan White has played in four games so far in 2004-05, including two of the last three. He had a solid start to his sophomore season, but a mid-season wrist injury sidelined him for three games and hampered him longer than that. He opened the season with a career-high six points at Pepperdine and knocked down two treys for another six points in the Maui-opening win over Central Michigan. Later in the season he had five points and a career-high four rebounds in his first career start against Prairie View. After playing limited minutes in 21 games as a freshman, White played more substantial minutes (9.8 a game) in 20 games last year. White played with poise in limited action as a freshman. He made 11 of 12 free throws (.917), including two at Duke with a minute left during UD's frantic comeback there. Among his better performances were a season-high 15 minutes at George Washington, getting highs in rebounds (3) and steals (2), and coming up with two points and two assists in the GW win at home. A Third Team All-Ohio performer as a senior at University High School in Cleveland, White averaged 20.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 2.7 blocks and 1.5 steals as a senior.
#21 Norman Plummer • Fr. • F • 6-7 • 215 • Fairfield, OH/Hargrave (VA) Military Acad. Norman Plummer was the first Flyer freshman to start a game since Tony Stanley started his very first game in 1997. After getting a total of four points and five rebounds in the first two games, he had 22 and nine in his next two. At DePaul, he had 12 points (5-7 FG), six rebounds and four steals. Against then-#24 UC, he had 10 points (4-4 FT). He had his first double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) vs. TSU. The 19 points he scored in the Akron win is the most by any UD freshman this year. He is averaging 12.7 points a game over the last three contests. He came off the bench to lead UD with 12 points (4-6 FG, 4-5 FT) in the Cornell game, and returned to the starting lineup with 14 points vs. Richmond and a team-high 12 at Duquesne. He leads the team in FG% (.473, 44-93) and is second in rebounding (4.9). Plummer came to Dayton after an impressive season at last year's prep school national champion, Hargrave Military Academy. Plummer was Hargrave's captain, leading scorer (22.8 ppg.) and rebounder (9.6 rpg.) in 2003-04. He led his team to a 25-1 record last year. He was one of eight Division I players on the team. In 2002-03, Plummer played for Brewster Academy in Brewster, New Hampshire. He helped Brewster to a #10 final ranking, averaging 26.0 points and 9.1 rebounds a game. He had 13 games of over 30 points in 2002-03 and was the leading scorer among New England prep schools.
#22 Marques Bennett • Jr. • G/F • 6-4 • 200 • Indianapolis, IN/Brebeuf Academy Marques Bennett has been UD's "big-heart" player this season, playing through the pain caused by calcification around a titanium plate that was placed in his leg after he fractured it playing youth soccer. Even though he is only 6-4, he has played both forwards and even center at times for UD this season. He had a career-high nine rebounds and four steals against Duquesne on January 5. Eighteen of his season's 19 steals have come in the last ten games, including eight in the last four. He came off the bench to lead UD to the Coppin State win, scoring a career-high 12 points and grabbing eight rebounds (8). He shot four-for-four from three-point in the game. He had three key steals in the Wyoming win, including two on the Cowboy's last two meaningful possessions. He has made 12 free throws (in 16 attempts) already this season, after shooting just 3-13 from the line the entire 2003-04 season. After playing just 12 minutes in six games as a freshman, he moved into the starting lineup (played in 27 games, starting 22 of the last 23) and increased his productivity to 2.9 points and 3.5 rebounds a game. His move from the bench to the starting lineup was thanks to his defense. And thanks to that defense, Bennett was named UD's Defender of the Year. Bennett was tied for second on the team in steals (24) and tied for fourth in rebounding (3.5). Bennett was also named co-winner (with classmate Warren Williams) of the Chris Daniels Memorial Most Improved Player Award. He led Brebeuf Academy to the #2 ranking in the state before the team was upset in overtime in the state tournament.
#32 Chris Alvarez • Fr. • F/C • 6-8 • 210 • Miami, FL/Blair (NJ) Academy Chris Alvarez led Dayton with nine rebounds in the EKU game, becoming the first freshman to lead the Flyers in rebounding in an opener since Ryan Perryman did vs. Howard in 1994. Alvarez started eight straight games, after James Cripe was injured, even though Alvarez broke his nose in practice before SLU. He had eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks in the Texas Southern win. He scored a career-high eight points (with six rebounds) at Vanderbilt. After playing just a scoreless five minutes (he did have one rebound) against Richmond, he came back with even points (3-4 FG) and eight rebounds (five offensive) at Duquesne. Alvarez comes to UD from the powerhouse Blair Academy in Blairstown, New Jersey. As a senior last season, he was all-state and all-league after averaging 14.3 points and 11.1 rebounds a game. The Miami, Florida, native was team captain on a team that had four other players who went on to Division I. During his junior year, Blair produced six D-I players; but Alvarez still saw 20 minutes a game. He averaged 7.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in games, but games were only part of the Chris Alvarez story in 2002-03. Every day in practice, he went up against two McDonald's All-Americas Luol Deng (who played at Duke and then was drafted by the Chicago Bulls) and Charlie Villaneuva (now at UConn).
#33 Jimmy Binnie • Fr. • F • 6-6 • 200 • Johnston, IA/Johnston Jimmy Binnie is one of five Flyers shooting 33% or better from 3-pt. range (.333, 9-27) and is actually shooting better almost twice as well from three than inside the arc (.167, 3-18). He came off the bench to drain three three-pointers in nine minutes in the first half during the Coppin State win. CSU coach "Fang" Mitchell pulled out box-and-one for Binnie in the second half. Binnie finished with nine points and seven rebounds. He had six points in the TSU win, and had six points and five rebounds vs. Cornell. Binnie and point guard Trent Meacham were teammates on the Iowa-based Martin Brothers Select team. In fact, they closed out their AAU careers by leading Martin Brothers to the 2004 Senior Boys (19-under) AAU national championship in June. Binnie was named the Most Valuable Player of that tournament, putting the cherry on top of an excellent prep career. Binnie was First Team All-Iowa and the Iowa Class 4A Player of the Year after averaging 23.9 points and 8.1 rebounds a game for Johnston High School, leading his team to an 18-6 record. A deadeye shooter, he finished as Johnston's all-time leading scorer and was three-time first team all-conference. Binnie scored a school-record 45 points (regulation game) as a senior against rival Des Moines East.
#44 James Cripe • So. • C • 6-11 • 250 • Loveland, OH/Loveland HS James Cripe returned to action versus Duquesne after missing the last seven games with a bruised hamstring. He played 15 minutes, and scored a season-high seven points (3-3 FG, 1-1 FT). Then in the next game against Cornell, he turned his left ankle and has been limited (21 minutes, three rebounds and zero points) since. He made his first career start and played a career-high 23 minutes in the opener vs. EKU. He played in all of last season's 32 games, averaging 8.2 minutes a game as seniors Keith Waleskowski and Sean Finn closed out their careers. Cripe averaged 1.5 points and 1.5 rebounds in this role. Two of the strongest efforts for the Cincinnati native were against Xavier and Cincinnati. He had nine points and three rebounds in the win over Xavier at UD Arena, and had five points and four rebounds in a career-high 20 minutes at Cincinnati. He also had eight points and seven rebounds vs. Wofford. The year he spent in transition from high school to college should serve him well, since Cripe was barely 18 when he graduated from high school (he turned 18 in May of his senior year). He also came to basketball late. He did not play organized basketball until his freshman year of high school, and he grew from 6-4 to 6-10 from his sophomore year to the beginning of his senior year. Cripe averaged 14.2 points and 7.0 rebounds as a senior at Loveland High School (near Cincinnati), his first and only season as a starter. Loveland was 20-3 in 2001-02 and won its third straight Ft. Ancient Valley League championship. He played in the Ohio-Kentucky All-Star game following his senior season.
