PDF Media Day Notes
DAYTON, Ohio -- University of Dayton men’s basketball coach Archie Miller has named his four seniors – forwards Luke Fabrizius and Chris Johnson, and guards Josh Parker and Paul Williams – team captains for the 2011-12 season.
“All four of these young men exemplify what our program is about,” Miller said. “They have a wealth of experience, a lot of pride in the University of Dayton and our basketball program. They have done a great job in leading our team on and off the court from the first day I came here.
They have embraced us as a new coaching staff and allowed us to push them. All of them will be an integral part of our season in so many ways.”
Fabrizius hails from Arlington Heights, Ill. A tremendous long-range shooter who has been plagued with various injuries throughout his career, Fabrizius has played 86 out of a possible 108 games in first three years. After recovering from a sprained ankle early in the 2010-11 season, he averaged 6.3 points and shot .463 (19-41) from behind the arc in the last 12 games of the year. For the entire 2010-11 campaign, the Hersey High School grad averaged 3.8 ppg. and shot .345 (29-84) from three-point range.
Johnson has earned Atlantic 10 accolades in each of his previous three seasons – All-Rookie, Chris Daniels Most Improved, Honorable Mention All-Atlantic 10 In 2011-12, he was second on the team in scoring (11.7) and rebounding (6.0), while leading the team in minutes (29.7), FT% (.830, 83-100), three-pointers (77) and steals (31). The Columbus (Ohio) Brookhaven product is already 36th in career scoring at UD with 1,069 points. He was the 2010 NIT MVP.
A transfer from Drake in his second season at Dayton, Parker played in 35 games as the backup point guard, with two starts, last season. He averaged 7.0 points and 2.6 assists a game while shooting .778 (56-72) from the line. Hailing from Chicago’s Thornton High, Parker’s play in the A-10 tournament was a big factor in UD’s run to the Atlantic 10 finals. He averaged 4.8 points and 3.3 assists a game, while sporting a 5.5 assist-to-turnover ratio for the tournament.
Williams, from Detroit’s Renaissance High School, started 34 of the 36 games he played in 2010-11. He averaged 8.4 points a game as a junior. He led the Flyers in 3-pt. FG% (.418, 56-134) last year, and was second in three-pointers made (56) and third in FT% (.786, 55-70). A two-year starter, he is also a standout backcourt defender.
UD returns three starters (including Johnson and Williams) from last year’s 22-14 team that reached the championship game of the Atlantic 10 tournament. The Flyers reached the post-season for the fourth consecutive season, playing in the NIT.
