Photo courtesy of gobonnies.com
BY: WILL NUNN; CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, SPORTS EDITOR
Yet another second-half comeback attempt fell just short for the St. Bonaventure University men’s basketball team, as it fell to Dayton University 72-70 Tuesday night in Dayton, Ohio.
The Flyers (15-8, 6-4 A-10), snapped a four game skid after winning their first five games to start conference play. Senior guard Javon Bennett led all scorers with 20 points, shooting 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.
Senior guard Jordan Derkack scored 18 points in 20 minutes off the Flyer bench, shooting 12-of-15 from the free throw line. Sophomore forward Amaël L’Etang added 16 points and five rebounds.
Junior guard Darryl Simmons II paced the Bonnies (13-10, 2-8 A-10) with 17 points, 13 of which came in the second half. Senior forward Frank Mitchell scored 16 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and redshirt junior guard Dasonte Bowen added 14 points and four assists.
Dayton controlled much of what was a sloppy first half of play. The Flyers scored 11 points off of nine Bonaventure turnovers, leading by as many as 13 and bringing a 41-30 lead into the half.
Bennett led the way for the Flyers, equaling his season average in the first half with 16 points. L’Etang and Derkack each added nine points in the first half.
Senior guard Cayden Charles led the Bonnies in the first half with 11 points, complemented by 10 points from Bowen. Bonaventure couldn’t find the bottom of the net from deep in the first half, shooting 0-of-8 from beyond the arc.
The Bonnies began to claw back in the second half, spearheaded by Simmons, whose 3-pointer ended the Bonnies’ 0-of-11 start from deep. The shot closed out an 11-0 run and brought Bonaventure within 2, cutting the lead to 47-45 in the first seven minutes of the half, forcing Dayton into a timeout. A 3-pointer by Egbuniwe out of the timeout gave the Bonnies the lead before Derkack ended the run.
The teams traded baskets for the remainder of the game. With the game deadlocked at 68 with a minute to play, Simmons turned the ball over, leading to a Bennett bucket, putting the Flyers ahead. On the ensuing possession, Mitchell grabbed an offensive rebound and drew a foul, connecting on both free throws to tie the game.
Derkack drew a foul on Charles on the other end, fouling Charles out of the game. Derkack knocked down the pair, and Simmons’ potential game-winning three hit the front of the iron, sealing the Dayton win.
The Bonnies remain on the road for a weekend clash with Fordham University in the Bronx. The game is scheduled to tip off at 2 p.m. Saturday and will be streamed live on ESPN+ and broadcast live on the Bonnies Online Network.
