Flyers bottled-up by Billikens

ST. LOUIS, Mo - Josh Benson came off the bench to add 12 points, six rebounds and three blocks in an 81-52 road loss to the Saint Louis Billikens.

The 29-point loss matched Dayton’s largest margin of defeat in Atlantic 10 play. The Flyers lost by 29 at Rhode Island, 97-68, on Jan. 4, 1997.

Vee Sanford was the only other Flyer to score in double figures after he poured in 10. Kevin Dillard added nine points.

One bright spot for Dayton was going 5-for-5 at the charity stripe, tying the NCAA record for free throw conversion percentage in a game.

The Flyers dropped to 12-9 overall and 2-5 in the Atlantic 10. All five losses in conference play have come against Top 75 RPI programs.

The game got away from the Flyers midway through the first half. Dayton took a 7-6 lead but scored on only three of its next 19 possessions while falling behind, 31-13.

The Flyers went seven minutes without scoring in one stretch, covering 12 possessions.

Overall, UD shot 42 percent from the field, but committed 21 turnovers and went 3-for-11 from beyond the arc.

Defensively, Dayton did not have an answer for Saint Louis. The Billikens shot 51 percent from the floor and 9-of-22 from three-point range.

Next up for Dayton is a home game on Wednesday, Feb. 6 versus the Saint Joseph’s Hawks. Tip begins at 7 p.m. ET.