Back in 2014, Dayton snuck into the tournament. Not much was expected from the eleventh seeded Dayton Fliers. The country was wrong.
Dayton first shocked America by defeating Ohio State and eliminating the ever persistent Aaron Craft. They followed that win up with another huge victory over third seeded Syracuse. In the Sweet 16, Dayton faced a meeting with 10th seeded Stanford, who had upset Kansas in their last game. Dayton destroyed Stanford, earning an Elite 8 appearance. In the Elite 8, Dayton would face top overall seed Florida, who finished Dayton's magical run.
But the country should not forget that Archie Miller could easily pull a similar stunt again.
Dayton's Current Resume.
Dayton currently holds a record of 22-5 and also owns first place in the Atlantic 10. Joe Lunardi projects that Dayton would be an eight seed if the season ended today and Dayton won their conference tournament. The Fliers have three victories over top 50 opponents and just one loss against an opponent outside the top 100. That resume should merit some consideration in a year of weak play for college basketball. Dayton may not have the ten quality victories that a team like Kansas has, but what they do have is the ability and knowledge to close games. And the roster composition is a huge part of that.
Roster Composition.
Senior guard Scoochie Smith, who played on the team that made it to the Elite 8, knows how to play in the tournament. And he performs well in the clutch. Kyle Davis and Charles Cooke, also seniors, know exactly how to score and play when it's crunch time. And they're balanced. Dayton has 10 players who play ten minutes on average per game.
That makes this team one to fear when March Madness comes around.
Coaching.
Archie Miller is no joke. Miller doesn't mind that he's coaching at a low profile school and isn't afraid to build out a roster that can get the job done. He's consistently led the team to the NCAA tournament and is a huge part of the reason why the Fliers made it to the Elite 8 in 2014.
When March Madness starts, be wary of picking against Dayton in your bracket.
