University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
Dayton
Richmond's NIT Hopes Dashed By Dayton, 71-56
03/19/2001 | Men's Basketball
March 19, 2001
By JAMES HANNAH
Associated Press Writer
DAYTON, Ohio - Dayton coach Oliver Purnell feels lucky that his team is around for the third round of the National Invitation Tournament. Advancing to the semifinals in New York won't get any easier.
"We're going to be playing another difficult team in Detroit," Purnell said Monday after a 71-56 second-round victory over Richmond. "But we have a chance to play for a championship. We're one game away from New York."
The winner of the Dayton-Detroit game later this week will advance to the NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden.
"Those guys are solid," guard Tony Stanley said of Detroit. "They have a very good guard in Rashaud Phillips. But I don't think it will be a matchup of me versus him. It's going to be our defense versus their defense."
Stanley broke the Richmond game open with 14 second-half points, including a steal and breakaway dunk with 6:05 left that fired up the hometown crowd and sapped the spirit of Richmond.
"I'd like to end my career in New York," said Stanley, a senior who finished with 17 points.
Dayton (21-12) broke away from a 50-50 tie with 7:23 remaining, outscoring Richmond 21-6 the rest of the way, led by Stanley and Brooks Hall, who finished with 14 points.
Richmond (22-7) got into foul trouble in the second half, enabling Dayton to seal the game at the foul line.
Greg Stevenson scored 21 points for Richmond, but the Spiders missed 15 of 20 3-point shots. The Flyers outrebounded Richmond 36-28.
"They had a heck of a run," Richmond coach John Beilein said of Dayton. "We ran into a very good team. We fought back into the game, but their run at the end was sensational."
Dayton led most of the first half, building a nine-point bulge. But Stevenson scored 11 first-half points, and Richmond kept the Flyers from getting the ball inside, enabling the Spiders to close to 30-27 at halftime.
Purnell said he was worried when Richmond began to control the game at the start of the second half.
"I'm glad we did not collapse at that point," Purnell said. "We started getting steals, loose balls, and the zone was working well. Stanley broke the game open. I'm glad we have him around."
