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FLYERS SEEK 8TH STRAIGHT HOME WIN AS UD HOSTS FORDHAM ON SATURDAY
Looking for its eighth consecutive home victory, the University of Dayton Flyers return home hosting the Fordham Rams on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on WHIO, carried by WHIO Radio and available with live video, stats on Gametracker and streaming audio at www.DaytonFlyers.com.

Dayton comes into Saturday’s game 14-5 overall and 2-2 in the Atlantic 10. The Flyers have been strong once again at home this year with an 11-1 record. UD is averaging 70.2 points, out-rebounding opponents by a plus 7.9 margin and shooting .421 from the field on Tom Blackburn Court in 2010-11. Chris Wright leads the UD attack with four double-doubles in his last five games. Wright ranks second in the Atlantic 10 with nine double-doubles this season. Chris Johnson has 11 consecutive games scoring in double figures. Juwan Staten continues his A-10 Rookie of the Year campaign after earning the Rookie of the Week award for the 4th time.

ABOUT FORDHAM
The Rams, 6-11 overall, and 0-5 in the Atlantic 10 and have lost six straight. Chris Gaston leads the Atlantic 10 lead in double-doubles with 10. He also tops in the A-10 in rebounding and ranks fifth in the NCAA in rebounding with 11.4 per game. Gaston, last year’s Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year, is also sixth in the conference in blocked shots (1.8 bpg) and 12th in scoring (15.1 ppg). Guard Brenton Butler is also an offensive threat averaging 15.3 points and 4.1 assists per game.

SERIES STUFF
Dayton leads the all-time series 20-5 and has won the last five meetings. Last season UD picked up a 74-58 win at Madison Square Garden thanks 13 points from Luke Fabrizius and 10 from Chris Johnson. The Flyers have won 10 straight games versus Fordham at UD Arena.

RPI UPDATE
According to CollegeRPI.com, Dayton’s RPI is 72. UD has five victories over Top 100 RPI opponents with wins over Ole Miss, New Mexico, George Mason, Miami Ohio and Seton Hall.

DEFEND, REBOUND & RUN
The big difference in UD’s success comes from defense and rebounding. In the Flyers’ 14 victories, their defense limits teams to shoot just .396 from the field, and UD out-rebounds opponents by a plus-8.8 margin. In the five losses, opponents are out-rebounding Dayton by 3.6 and shooting .415 from the floor. Dayton is 8-3 when it has more fast break points than its opponent. UD holds a 246-192 advantage this season in fast break points.

SCORING BALANCE
Dayton has enjoyed scoring balance with seven different leading scorers in its first 19 games. Chris Johnson and Chris Wright have each led six times. Paul Williams and Juwan Staten each led twice and Devin Searcy, Josh Parker and Matt Kavanaugh once apiece. UD has seven different players averaging 4.0 points or more per game.

SPARK OFF THE BENCH
With such a deep team, it is no surprise UD’s bench serves as a big part of the team’s success. UD has out-scored the opponent’s bench 343-227 this season. UD’s bench has out-scored its opponent’s bench in 15 of the 19 games this season and has an 13-2 record as well.

CAN’T DEFEND FREE THROWS
In UD’s last three losses, opponents have shot well above their season average. ODU came in shooting .608 (124-204), and shot .821 (23-28). UMass came in shooting (.684 (199-291) and shot .806 (29-36). Xavier came in shooting .708 (252-356), and shot .862 (25-29).

THE HIT LIST
Chris Wright continues to post memorable performances. His signature performance came in the win against New Mexico with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Wright matched his career-best with 30 points against Western Carolina. He tallied a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds against Mount St. Mary’s. Wright added another one with game highs of 23 points and 12 rebounds versus Akron. Wright had 13 points and 15 rebounds versus East Tennessee State. Against Miami he recorded game-highs of 18 points and 11 rebounds. At Old Dominion, Wright swiped a career-best four steals to go with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Against Seton Hall and George Mason, Wright had 13 points and nine rebounds. At Saint Louis, he posted game highs of 14 points and 14 rebounds. Wright led UD with 14 points and 10 boards versus Saint Joseph’s. At Xavier, Wright tallied 10 points and 10 boards and matched his career best with five assists.

NAISMITH TROPHY PRESEASON WATCH LIST ADDS DAYTON’S WRIGHT
Chris Wright has been named to the 2010-11 Preseason Naismith Trophy watch list for the second consecutive season. Wright is one of three players named to the Naismith watch list from the Atlantic 10.

DAYTON’S CHRIS WRIGHT NAMED TO WOODEN AWARD PRESEASON TOP 50 LIST
Chris Wright is one of the top college basketball players named to the John Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 list. This is the third straight year Dayton has had a player on the Wooden List. Brian Roberts was on the 2008 Midseason Top 30 List, and Wright was also on last year’s Preseason List. The Trotwood, Ohio native is 23rd in career scoring at UD with 1,377 points in 106 games. Named First Team All-Atlantic 10 last year, Wright is averaging 13.2 points and 9.2 rebounds per game this season. His 9.2 rebounds per game ranks second in the A-10 and 39th in the NCAA.

WRIGHT NOMINATED FOR LOWE’S SENIOR CLASS AWARD
University of Dayton senior forward Chris Wright is one of 30 men’s basketball players who have been listed on the official candidate list for the 2011 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. The award, presented annually to the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete of the Year in eight sports, focuses on the “Four C’s” of classroom, character, community and competition. Wright is the second Flyer named to the Lowe’s Senior CLASS candidate list. Brian Roberts earned the honor in 2007.

THE COMPANY YOU KEEP
Chris Wright is one of nine college basketball players who appeared on the preseason Lowe’s Senior CLASS, Naismith and Wooden Watch Lists. Joining CW are Kevin Anderson (Richmond), Malcolm Delaney (Virginia Tech), Jimmer Fredette (BYU), Jeremy Hazell (Seton Hall), Jon Leuer (Wisconsin), E’Twaun Moore (Purdue), Jacob Pullen (Kansas State) and Kyle Singler (Duke).

HELLO MR. EVERYTHING
Chris Wright is not only a senior captain, but a leader in key statistical figures this season. He leads Dayton in points (13.2), rebounds (9.2), blocks (23), field goals made (92), free throws made (63), steals (18), dunks (24) and double-doubles (9).

WRIGHT NAMED A-10 PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Dayton’s Chris Wright earned the Atlantic 10 Co-Player of the Week award on Jan. 3, 2011. Wright averaged a double-double with 15.0 points and 11.5 rebounds in leading Dayton to two important non-conference wins.

BETTER MAKE THE WRIGHT DECISION
Chris Wright has at least one block in eight straight games.  In his UD career Wright has 134 blocks, good for second on Dayton’s all-time list. Sean Finn is the school record holder with 139. Wright’s career average of 1.3 blocks per game ranks first on UD’s all-time list. He had three versus New Mexico. Wright had two apiece against Mount St. Mary’s, Akron, Miami, Winthrop, George Mason and Saint Louis. Wright also holds UD’s single-season record for blocks, with 53 during the 2009-10 season.

BLOCK PARTY
Dating back to last year, Chris Wright has a block in 24 of his last 28 games. He leads Dayton with 23 rejections.

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARDS
Chris Wright is currently 13th on UD’s all-time list in rebounding. He needs 21 boards to catch George Jackson with 782.

PRICE IS WRIGHT
Senior Chris Wright earned a spot on the Atlantic 10 Preseason First Team for the second straight season. Wright stepped up his level of play against A-10 regular season opponents this year, averaging 11.3 points, 10.3 rebounds and shooting .516 from the field.

THAT FIGURES
Chris Wright leads UD with 14 double-figure scoring games. UD is 11-3 this year when he has 10-plus points.

WRIGHT’S ALL-ATLANTIC 10 ACCOLADES
Chris Wright earned a First Team All-Atlantic 10 selection in 2009-10. A preseason nominee last year for both the Wooden and Naismith awards, Wright led Dayton in scoring (13.7 ppg), rebounding (7.2 rpg), minutes per game (28.6) and dunks (a school-record 68). He also ranked third in the A-10 in field goal percentage, ninth in rebounding and blocks, and 17th in scoring. Wright is the fifth player in UD history to earn a First Team selection and the first underclassman.

WRIGHT TO KNOW
The Dayton Flyers are 80-26 overall, 55-3 at home and 6-6 against ranked opponents with Chris Wright in the lineup during his UD career. In fact, he is 75-3 at home over his last four-and-a-half years of organized basketball in high school and college.

DUNK TANK
After 106 games in a Flyer uniform, Chris Wright is Dayton’s all-time dunk leader with 157 career dunks. His 68 slams in 2009-10 topped his own school record of 54 set in 2008-09. This year he had three against Akron and two at Ole Miss. Wright flushed three down versus Western Carolina. He had two at Seton Hall. Wright had three slams, including an ESPN Top Play dunk versus New Mexico.

DOUBLE THE PLEASURE, DOUBLE THE FUN
Chris Wright leads Dayton and the Atlantic 10 this season with nine double-doubles. He has four in this last five games. Wright possesses 25 career double-doubles.

WRIGHT AMONG 10 COLLEGE STARS INVITED BACK TO PRACTICE AGAINST TEAM USA NATIONAL TEAM
University of Dayton senior forward Chris Wright was one of 10 members of the USA Basketball Select Team that trained against the gold-medal winning 2010 USA Men’s World Championship Team this summer.

CHRIS & CHRIS
In the previous three seasons, Chris Wright and Chris Johnson have formulated a winning one-two punch. When the duo is out on the court, Dayton has won 73 percent of its games (65-24).

WARM IT UP CHRIS
Chris Johnson is building off a breakout sophomore season. At Ole Miss he had game highs of 20 points and 11 rebounds. Johnson scored 15 points against East Tennessee State. CJ recorded a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds against Central Connecticut State. He had 24 points and nine rebounds at Old Dominion. Johnson tallied 15 points against Western Carolina. He recorded 16 points and eight rebounds versus Winthrop. At Seton Hall, CJ had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Johnson led UD with 18 points versus George Mason. He recorded 15 points and seven rebounds against New Mexico. At Saint Louis, he had 13 points and six rebounds. He tallied 10 points and three blocks at UMass. Johnson scored 13 and dished out four assists versus St. Joe’s. CJ scored 16 at Xavier.

PREMIUM PRODUCTION
Chris Johnson has scored in double-figures in 11 straight contests. He leads the team in offensive rebounds (45), free throw percentage (48-54, .889) and minutes (30.8) and ranks second in scoring (12.5 ppg). CJ is also second the Atlantic 10 in free throw percentage. Johnson is 55th on Dayton’s all-time scoring list with 879 career points. He needs 20 three-pointers to reach Coby Turner for ninth on UD’s all-time list.

CJ NAMED TO PRESEASON A-10 THIRD TEAM
Chris Johnson earned a spot on the Atlantic 10 Preseason Third Team. CJ was the 2010 NIT Most Valuable Player. In his last 11 games, he is averaging 15.3 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting .442 from the floor and hitting 37-of-40 free throws.

JOHNSON NAMED THE 2010 ATLANTIC 10 CHRIS DANIELS MOST IMPROVED PLAYER
Chris Johnson earned the 2010 Atlantic 10 Chris Daniels Most Improved Player award. Last year, Johnson led the team in FT% (.848, 84-99) and was 2nd in scoring (11.9) and rebounding (6.9). In 2008-09, he averaged 6.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Johnson is the first player in A-10 history named the Most Improved Player after being named to the All-Rookie Team.

DIAL IN WITH DEVIN
Senior forward Devin Searcy looks to close his Flyer career on a high note. He opened the season with his first career double-double, tallying 15 points and 12 rebounds against Mount St. Mary’s. Searcy added his second double-double in as many games with 10 points and 11 boards versus Akron. At Ole Miss, Searcy scored nine points going 5-of-6 at the charity stripe. He shot 5-of-5 from the floor en route to 10 points against Miami. Searcy tallied eight points and seven rebounds against Central Connecticut State. He hauled in 10 rebounds versus Winthrop. Searcy added six boards at Saint Louis. He set a career high with five assists versus Saint Joseph’s.

DOUBLE DOWN
After not having a double-double in his first 94 career games, senior Devin Searcy has had two this season. Searcy is tied for the team lead in free throw percentage (16-of-18, .889) and ranks third in rebounding (4.4) and offensive rebounding (38).

P-DUBYA
Paul Williams has come alive on the offensive end scoring in double figures nine times this season and in four of his last five games. He opened this year with 14-points against Mount St. Mary’s. He added 15 points against Savannah State. Williams had a career-high 17 points on 5-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc at Old Dominion. Williams then scored 16 on 4-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc against New Mexico. Williams scored 12 points at Saint Louis and at UMass. He had 10 points at Xavier. At home this season he is Dayton’s third-leading scorer, averaging 9.5 points a game. 

THAT’S SOME WILL-POWER
Paul Williams ranks 72nd in the NCAA and leads the team in three-point shooting (36-78, .462). He is second for UD in three-pointers made (36), and free throw percentage (30-35, .857). He is also 5th in the A-10 in 3-pt. field goal percentage.

BIG WILL
Paul Williams plays his best against the big-name opponents. Last year Williams added 16 points against North Carolina in the NIT Championship. At the Puerto Rico Tipoff, Williams hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in the win over Georgia Tech and scored 10 versus Kansas State. This season, Williams shot 5-of-6 from beyond the arc to finish with 17 points at Old Dominion. Williams scored 16 on 4-of-6 shooting against New Mexico. He recorded 10 points at Xavier.

COOL HAND LUKE
Luke Fabrizius, Dayton’s top 3-point shooter from last season, opened the 2010-11 campaign with six points against East Tennessee State. After not hitting a field goal in his next four games, Fabrizius tallied seven points and three rebounds versus Winthrop. He hit three consecutive 3-pointers en route to nine points versus George Mason. Fabrizius added two steals at Saint Louis. He sank two 3’s versus Saint Joseph’s.

BOOM BOOM BENSON
Josh Benson is consistently providing a spark off the bench this season. At Ole Miss he scored 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting with five rebounds. He followed that up with eight points versus Savannah State. Against Florida A&M, Benson added six points and seven rebounds. Benson added six points and a game-high nine rebounds at Cincinnati. He then tallied eight rebounds against ETSU. Benson scored eight points versus Western Carolina. He netted a career-high 11 points at Xavier on 5-of-6 shooting from the field.

KAVAN-AUGHSOME
To say Matt Kavanaugh had a terrific performance against Seton Hall would be the understatement of the season. After scoring 11 points in his first 11 games, Kavanaugh recorded career highs of 15 points and seven rebounds. His previous career best in scoring was two points. In other action this season, he tallied five rebounds against Mount St. Mary’s. Kavanaugh matched that total with five more boards versus Western Carolina. He had five boards versus New Mexico. Kavanaugh added five points and six rebounds at Xavier.

PARKER BROTHERS
Josh Parker is showcasing great scoring ability at almost every opportunity. His biggest performance came against New Mexico with 10 of his 16 points in the first half. He scored 18 points at Ole Miss. Against Akron, Parker scored nine points, and had nine against Savannah State. In the Florida A&M win, Parker led all scorers with 18 points. He dished out five assists with zero turnovers against East Tennessee State. Parker then had six assists versus Miami. In his first career start, Parker added 16 points and eight assists against CCSU. He had nine points in 15 minutes versus Saint Joseph’s. At Xavier Parker scored seven points.

STATEN NAMED A-10 ROOKIE OF THE WEEK FOR THE FOURTH TIME
Juwan Staten was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week on Jan. 16, 2011 for the fourth time this season, leading all rookies in the conference. He earned the award previously on Dec. 27, 2010, Dec. 6, 2010 and Nov. 22, 2010. Staten is 12 dimes away from UD’s all-time freshman record for assists, chasing the 128 dished out by Negele Knight. Staten’s four Rookie of the Week awards are the most by a Flyer since Chris Wright’s four. Staten’s 18 starts are the most by a UD freshman point guard since Josh Postorino, who had 22 starts in 1994-95. The most starts by a freshman point at Dayton is 29 by Johnny Davis in 1973-74. Staten leads the A-10 in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.6) as well as assists per game (6.4).

STATEN THE OBVIOUS
Juwan Staten is among the leading candidates for Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year. Against Florida A&M, Staten had his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 assists. He had eight assists in the win over Mount St. Mary’s. Staten matched that eight-assist effort with another one at Ole Miss. Staten led UD with nine points and four assists at Cincinnati. He then added 14 points and five assists against ETSU. He tallied 12 points and eight assists in the win over Miami. Staten recorded seven points and seven assists at Old Dominion. Staten scored nine at Seton Hall. He had 16 points versus George Mason. Staten had an ESPN Top Play dunk to go with seven points and six assists versus New Mexico. He had eight points and eight assists at Saint Louis. Staten tallied 10 points and seven assists at UMass. He had nine points and six assists versus Saint Joseph’s. Staten led Dayton with 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor at Xavier.

STATEN DOIN’ GREAT IN DAYTON
Flyer freshman point guard Juwan Staten’s 6.4 assists a game not only lead the Atlantic 10, but also is the top mark among freshmen in the country. The top five freshman assist leaders are Staten (10th, 6.4), Ohio State’s Aaron Craft (45th, 4.9), Vermont’s Brian Voelkel (45th, 4.9), New Mexico’s Kendall Williams (62nd, 4.7) and Brown’s Sean McGonagill (4.6, 73rd). Staten was the first Flyer freshman to start a season-opener at point guard since Edwin Young in 1996. Staten’s point-assist double-double against Florida A&M was the first at UD since Ramod Marshall had 17 and 10 against St. Bonaventure on Jan. 4, 2004.

STATEN ON COUSY AWARD CANDIDATE LIST
Juwan Staten is one of 66 college basketball players, and one of just five freshmen, on the 2011 Bob Cousy Award candidate list. The annual award, named for Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic Bob Cousy, recognizes college basketball’s top point guard. 66 players have been nominated for the 2011 award. Staten is also one of five freshmen on the candidate list. That includes Duke’s Kyrie Iriving, South Carolina’s Bruce Ellington, Kentucky’s Brandon Knight and Missouri’s Phil Pressey.

NO BS WITH SPEARMAN
Brandon Spearman plays with energy on both ends of the floor. Spearman sank a three-pointer against Mount St. Mary’s. He followed that up with seven points in 12 minutes against Akron. Spearman provided a big lift with 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting versus Florida A&M. He had three points and four boards at Cincinnati. Spearman had four points, three rebounds and two assists versus Winthrop. He sank three free throws at St. Louis.

OLIVER TWIST
Devin Oliver consistently gets to the glass and provides energy off the bench. Oliver recorded eight rebounds at Cincinnati. He tallied two rebounds and a steal against Mount St. Mary’s in his Flyer debut. He then snagged five rebounds in eight minutes against Savannah State. Oliver had five points and three boards against Florida A&M. He corralled three rebounds versus Western Carolina. He then had eight points versus Winthrop.

KING OF THE HILL
Ralph Hill had a strong opening performance, connecting on a three-pointer and adding two rebounds versus Mount St. Mary’s. He added two points and a rebound against Florida A&M, and corralled two rebounds at Cincinnati.

UD SIGNS LaDONTAE HENTON & PERCY GIBSON
Coach Brian Gregory announced the signing of two prospects from the state of Michigan to National Letters of Intent as 6-foot-8 forward Percy Gibson of Southeastern High School in Detroit, and 6-foot-6 forward LaDontae Henton of Lansing’s Eastern High School committed to UD. Gibson averaged 17.2 points and 11.0 rebounds last season for powerhouse Detroit Southeastern High School. Henton is a three-time All-Michigan Class A (big school) selection. He averaged 24.8 points, 14.5 rebounds, 2.6 blocked shots, 2.5 assists and 2.3 steals, and was the only junior named first team all-state in Class A.

DILLARD TRANSFERS TO DAYTON
In May, coach Brian Gregory announced that Kevin Dillard, who was the 2008 Illinois Mr. Basketball award winner, transferred to UD from Southern Illinois. Dillard, a 6-0 guard who graduated from Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Chicago, will become eligible to play for the Flyers beginning with the 2011-12 season. Dillard averaged 12.3 points and 5.0 assists in 2009-10 for SIU. In 2008-09, he was named the Missouri Valley Freshman of the Year after leading SIU in scoring (12.2).

EYE 75 ON THE SCOREBOARD
UD is 50-7 under Brian Gregory when scoring at least 75 points. The Flyers are 4-1 in 2010-11 when reaching 75 points. UD went 10-1 last year and is 20-3 the previous three seasons.

CONQUERING GOLIATH
The Flyers have proved they can handle the big-name programs. Dayton is 12-5 in the last four years against BCS programs and won five of its last seven games against BIG EAST opponents.

WELCOME TO FLIGHT CLUB
Dayton set a single-season record for dunks with 127 last season. This year Dayton has 39 dunks through 19 games. Chris Wright leads UD with 24 this season. Josh Benson has six, Chris Johnson five, Devin Searcy three and Juwan Staten one.

THIRD IS THE WORD
Dayton has hit at least one 3-point shot in 65 straight games.

KNOCK ‘EM DOWN
Dayton is 7-1 this season when shooting 70 percent or better at the free throw line.

THE ROUND MOUND OF REBOUND
Dayton leads the Atlantic 10 with 39.4 rebounds per game and ranks 33rd in the NCAA. In the Mount St. Mary’s win, UD out-rebounded the Mount 54-31. The Flyers then followed that up with a 42-27 advantage over Akron and a 51-35 edge at Ole Miss. In the Winthrop win, UD held a 46-28 advantage on the glass. At Seton Hall Dayton had 18 offensive boards. UD had 48 rebounds against New Mexico. Last year Dayton had two games with 20 or more offensive rebounds. The Flyers have already surpassed that total with 20 or more offensive rebounds against Mount St. Mary’s, Ole Miss and Winthrop.

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Through games of Jan 18, Dayton leads the A-10 in 3-pt field goal defense (.303) and rebounding margin (+5.5), ranks third in field goal defense (.401) and fourth in scoring defense (63.8).

SHUTDOWN DEFENDERS
Dayton is 8-1 this season when limiting opponents to 60 points or less. The Flyers limited Mount St. Mary’s to shoot just 31 percent from the floor. UD forced 21 turnovers against Miami. The Flyers smothered Seton Hall to 26 percent shooting from the field in the second half. In the New Mexico win, UD had six steals. In the first half at SLU, the Flyers held the Billikens to 1-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc. At UMass, the Flyers limited the Minutemen to 27 percent shooting from the field.

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION
Head coach Brian Gregory has enjoyed success in the month of January going 37-22 (.627) in eight seasons. Dayton is 3-2 this season during the month of January.

DISH IT OUT
Sharing the ball has been a consistent theme with the Flyers. UD has had an assist on 66 percent of its converted field goals (288 assists, 435 field goals). Dayton’s best performance came versus St. Joe’s with 21 assists on 23 field goals.

HANGING WITH THE ATLANTIC 10
The Flyers are in their 16th season in the Atlantic 10 and possess a 138-170 overall record in conference play. Dayton has finished .500 or better in 10 of the previous 11 seasons.

YA GOTTA HAVE HEART
Two of the top 10 comebacks from halftime in Flyer history have come this year. UD rallied from 14 down at Seton Hall and 13 at Ole Miss. The other eight all occurred in separate seasons.

GREGORY MOVES UP THE CHARTS
After defeating Miami on Dec. 4, coach Brian Gregory moved into 3rd place on UD’s all-time wins list. Gregory trails UD Hall of Famers Don Donoher (437 wins) & Tom Blackburn (352).

PERFECT TEN
Brian Gregory has led Dayton to five consecutive seasons with at least 10 victories in non-conference play.

HOME SWEET HOME
Over the last four years on Tom Blackburn Court, the Flyers are 73-8. The 73 victories are tied for the sixth-most in the NCAA since the 2006-07 season. Just ahead of UD are Kansas (84), Ohio State (80), Pittsburgh (79), Syracuse (76), Texas A&M (74), Florida and Dayton (73). Dayton won its 500th game at UD Arena on Dec. 29, 2009 and is 517-184 in 41 seasons at the Arena. The Flyers have a home all-time winning percentage of .781 (774-216).

FLYERS PICKED TO FINISH FOURTH IN THE PRESEASON ATLANTIC 10 POLL
The Flyers were picked to finish fourth in the 2010 Atlantic 10 Men’s Basketball Preseason Poll. The Flyers are led by preseason first-team selection Chris Wright and third-team selection Chris Johnson. Freshman Juwan Staten, an ESPNU Top 100 guard, earned a spot on the preseason all-rookie team.

UD LOCKED IN TO REGULAR SEASON INVITATIONALS THROUGH 2013
The Dayton Flyers announced they will compete in three consecutive regular season tournaments in the next three seasons. The Flyers have signed deals to play in the Old Spice Classic in Orlando in 2011 and an ESPN Regional-sponsored event in 2012. The Flyers will return to the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational in 2013, 10 years after the Flyers won Maui in Brian Gregory’s first season.

TAKING THE NATIONAL STAGE
To start the 2009-10 campaign, the Flyers were nationally ranked in a major poll for the first time since the 1967-68 season. With UD being ranked at some point in each of the last three seasons, it is also the first time in 49 years the Flyers were ranked at any time in three consecutive seasons. The last time that happened was the 1958-59, 1959-60 and 1960-61 seasons. Here is the highest Dayton has been nationally ranked in the previous three seasons and the season finish:
• 2009–10 – #19 / (NIT Champions)
• 2008–09 – #25 / (NCAA Second Round)
• 2007–08 – #14 / (NIT Quarterfinals)

FORTUNE 500
The Flyers celebrated their 500th win at UD Arena on Dec. 21, 2009. The Arena opened in 1969. UD Arena is one of just 27 active facilities to have hosted at least 500 wins for its home team, and only one of two built since 1969. The list includes Cameron Indoor Stadium, The Palestra, Pauley Pavilion, Freedom Hall, Allen Fieldhouse, The Pit and Hinkle Fieldhouse. Only four facilities – Pauley Pavilion, The Pit, Freedom Hall and the Huntsman Center – had 500 wins faster than UD Arena.

LEGENDS OF THE NIT
Dayton’s NIT history is rich with success. Last season was Dayton’s third NIT title. UD previously won the NIT in 1962 and 1968. Last year was also Dayton’s 22nd appearance in the postseason NIT. Dayton has been the runner-up five times and showcases a 40-20 all-time record. Coach Brian Gregory is 7-1 all-time in the NIT. Dayton’s 22 NIT appearances are second only to St. John’s 27 berths. The Flyers reached the finals five times in the 1950’s and won the tournament in 1962 (under coach Tom Blackburn) and 1968 (under coach Don Donoher).

AND THE CROWD GOES WILD
The eight-millionth UD fan in UD Arena history attended the Presbyterian game on Dec. 19, 2009. UD’s last 178 regular season home games have had attendance of at least 11,000 fans. In the last 14 years, 99% of UD’s home games have drawn at least 10,000 (417 of 420), including the last 216 regular season games.

THE 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 Jan. 8, 2001 issue of the magazine, UD’s fans were tabbed as college basketball’s best. And they prove it to everyone the Flyers play. UD Arena has had 98 sellouts in its 40-year history including two this year. The record for sellouts is eight in the Arena’s first season (1969-70). The Flyers finished the 2009-10 regular season averaging 13,038 fans a game and had seven sellouts.

UD AMONG THE BEST IN NCAA ATTENDANCE
Dayton finished in the Top 30 in men’s basketball attendance for the 14th straight season in 2008-09. The Flyers led the Atlantic 10 in attendance for the 13th straight season (including the 2009-10 season). UD averaged more than 2,400 fans a game better than any other team in the A-10.

RECORD BREAKING SEASON
The UD men’s basketball program set the regular season attendance record in 2009-10. The Flyers averaged 13,038 fans per game during the regular season. That mark was slightly above the all-time mark of 12,982 set during the first season at UD Arena in 1969-70.

DAYTON TO HOST NCAA INAUGURAL FIRST FOUR NCAA BASKETBALL GAMES
As it has for the past decade, the Road to the Final Four will begin at the University of Dayton Arena this year. That was made official when the NCAA announced that Dayton will be the site of the inaugural First Four games of the 2011 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship on Tuesday and Wednesday, March 15 and 16. UD Arena will host the four first-round games over two nights in the NCAA’s new 68-team format, which was announced in July.

MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN
The University of Dayton Arena has hosted NCAA tournament events in 24 of the 41 years since opening its doors for the 1969-70 season. The NCAA First Four games will make UD Arena the most-used tournament venue in NCAA history. To date, UD Arena has hosted 83 NCAA men’s tournament games, tying it with Kansas City’s Municipal Auditorium.

DAYTON FARES WELL IN THE 2010 NCAA GRADUATION SUCCESS RATE
The NCAA Graduation Success Report on Division I institutions released on Oct. 27 places the University of Dayton in familiar territory – among the nation’s best. UD’s 94 GSR in this year’s report places the University tied for 21st in the nation and tied for first in the Atlantic 10. Dayton has 10 of its sports teams – baseball, women’s basketball, men’s cross country, men’s golf, women’s golf, women’s rowing, women’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s tennis and volleyball -- that have a perfect 100 GSR in this year’s report, the most of any school in the A-10. The UD men’s basketball team’s GSR ranked second in the A-10.

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 1960s.