University Of Dayton Flyers

Dayton Flyers receive at-large bid into NCAA Tournament

By Michael Purves and WHIO Staff

Dayton Flyers Watch Party The Dayton Flyers celebrate hearing their name called during the NCAA Selection Show Sunday, March 17. The Flyers received an at-large bid as the 7 seed in the West Regional. Dayton takes on Nevada in Salt Lake City Thursday. (Eric Higgenbotham/Staff)

By Michael Purves and WHIO Staff

DAYTON — The Dayton Flyers have learned where they’ll play in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

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The Flyers were given the 7 seed in the West Region and will play the 10-seeded Nevada Wolf Pack in Salt Lake City, Utah Thursday.

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If Dayton wins, they would play the winner of the no. 2 seed in the region, Arizona Wildcats and 15 seed Long Beach State.

Dayton received an at-large bid to the tournament following a 24-7 campaign in the regular season and a 14-4 record in conference play. Dayton lost in the Atlantic 10 tournament Thursday, falling to eventual champion Duquesne 65-57.

The Dukes received an 11 seed as the automatic qualifier from the conference. They will play Brigham Young University, the 6 seed in the East regional, in Omaha, Nebraska.

Game times and the network they will be televised on will be released at a later time.

The Flyers have had success previously starting the tournament in Salt Lake City. The program’s run to the Elite Eight in 1984 began with the Flyers seeded 10 in the West playing in Salt Lake City. The Flyers knocked off Louisiana State and Oklahoma in the Beehive State before taking down Washington in Los Angeles. Dayton would lose in the Elite Eight to eventual national champion Georgetown.

Dayton’s current head coach Anthony Grant was a freshman on that 1984 team.

This is Dayton’s 19th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and the first since 2017 when the Flyers lost in the first round to Wichita State. This excludes the 2019-2020 where Dayton was a presumptive no. 1 seed. That tournament was cancelled, and a bracket never revealed, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dayton has a 19-20 record all-time in the NCAA Tournament. The program’s last wins in the tournament were in 2015 when Dayton beat Boise State in the First Four and then took down Providence. Dayton later lost to Oklahoma in the second round.

Dayton’s game will be aired on TBS on Thursday at 4:30 p.m.

Thursday’s opening game of Mississippi State vs Michigan State will air on WHIO-TV at 12:15 p.m.

We will continue to follow this story.

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