The Dayton Flyers secured their spot in the Atlantic 10 tournament championship by defeating Saint Louis. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Following the wild conclusion of the Big 12 tournament semifinal featuring Arizona and Iowa State on Friday evening, Dayton and Saint Louis sought to deliver an even more thrilling contest in their Atlantic 10 tournament semifinal showdown on Saturday.
Dayton secured a narrow 70-69 victory over Saint Louis, clinched by Amaël L’Etang’s tip-in with merely 0.3 seconds remaining. L’Etang’s decisive play came from a rebound opportunity after Jordan Derkack’s contested spinning layup attempt near the hoop.
The game’s conclusion was packed with excitement, extending beyond that single play within the final half-minute. After Keonte Jones of Dayton sank a pair of free throws, narrowing the Billikens’ advantage to 66-65, Saint Louis committed a turnover by passing the ball out of bounds. Subsequently, Javon Bennett of the Flyers missed a layup attempt, but Jones retrieved the rebound and dished it to Jacob Conner, who then connected on a crucial 3-pointer to take the lead.
Nevertheless, Dayton’s defense allowed Saint Louis’s standout player, Robbie Avila, too much space at the top of the arc on the subsequent play, enabling Avila to sink a shot that put his team back ahead by a single point. His successful attempt left ample time on the clock for Derkack to make a full-court drive.
This marks the second defeat in three matches for Saint Louis, despite the Billikens clinching the regular season A-10 championship, and it could significantly impact the NCAA tournament prospects for several teams anxiously awaiting Selection Sunday announcements.
Saint Louis is generally expected to secure an at-large bid for the tournament, while VCU’s position remains tenuous. Should the Rams overcome Saint Joseph in the other semifinal on Saturday afternoon, they would contend for the conference’s automatic entry. However, a Dayton victory in Sunday’s championship game could potentially lead to a third A-10 team entering March Madness, possibly displacing a team from a major conference.
