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Recap: Bonnies MBB defeats Dayton, Schmidt records 400th career win – The Bona Venture

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Recap: Bonnies MBB defeats Dayton, Schmidt records 400th career win

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Photo: Joseph DeBell

BY: ANDREW HALE, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team avoided its sixth loss in seven games Tuesday night, handing Dayton its biggest defeat of the season 75-53.

The Bonnies (16-6, 4-5 A-10) and Flyers (14-7, 4-4 A-10)  played an even first seven minutes; however, a flurry of Bonaventure 3-pointers quickly gave the Bonnies a double-digit lead.

Ten minutes into the half, Bonaventure junior forward Lajae Jones put the Bonnies ahead 11 with his fourth straight three. Jones finished the half 5-6 from three with a game-high 16 points.

“I thought that Lajae [Jones] got us off to a good start, making threes at the beginning of the game,” Bonaventure head coach Mark Schmidt said.

Redshirt sophomore guard Jonah Hinton joined the 3-point party as his second three put the Bonnies up 29-18.

Hinton finished the half shooting 2-3 from 3-point range.

Dayton responded with two threes of its own, cutting the lead to nine with three minutes left in the first half.

A pair of Bonaventure turnovers, leading to Dayton points, helped the Flyers cut the lead to 39-32 at the end of the opening half.

Dayton freshman forward Amaël L’Etang led the Flyers with eight points, four rebounds and two blocks in the first half.

The Bonnies shot 8-15 from 3-point range and 48% from the field overall in the first half, while holding the Flyers to 33% and 45%, respectively.

Dayton picked up where they left off to begin the second half as junior guard Javon Bennett opened the scoring with a 3-pointer.

The Bonnies responded as Jones hit his sixth three of the game on the following possession. Jones finished the night with a game-high 23 points, shooting 8-12 from the field.

“My teammates just kept on passing me the ball, and I didn’t want to let them down,” Jones said. “So, I just felt like if I’m not hitting shots, then I’d be letting my teammates down.”

The Bonnies remained in front of the Flyers throughout the second half, and following back-to-back makes from senior guard Melvin Council Jr., the Bonnies took their biggest lead of the game at 68-45 with five minutes left.

Council Jr. finished with 18 points, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals.

“Melvin’s [Council Jr.] a baller,” Schmidt said. “Melvin has ‘it’, whatever that ‘it’ is. When you watch him play, he plays with that joy, and that’s why he’s good. He’s got some gifts. The Lord blessed him, but he plays with joy, and that’s how you’re supposed to play this game.”

Bonaventure remained in the driver’s seat for the final five minutes, securing their first win since Jan. 15.

Redshirt freshman Noah Bolanga came alive in the second, scoring six of his career-high nine points in the half.

“To me, it was the first time where it looked like [Bolanga] belonged,” Schmidt said. “He looked a little bit more comfortable. He made some baskets. He defended. Just like everybody, he made mistakes, but I thought that was the first game where I felt he belonged out there, and hopefully, that gives him some confidence as we go throughout the rest of the year.”

Senior forward Nate Santos led the Flyers in scoring and rebounds with 12 and seven, respectively.

The Bonnies held Dayton to its lowest-scoring performance of the season, forcing the Flyers to shoot 40% from the field and 33% from three.

The Bonnies, on the other hand, shot 51% from the field and 48% from the three and outrebounded Dayton by nine.

“I think the guys realize you win in this league by playing defense and rebounding,” Schmidt said. “Today was indicative of how we have to do it night in and night out. It’s the defense, it’s the rebounding, it’s taking care of the basketball. If we can do that, then we have a chance to be successful.”

Bonaventure’s victory Tuesday night marked the 400th win of Mark Schmidt’s career.

“The 400 wins, it’s all about the players,” Schmidt said. “I can put guys in situations, but they got to do the job. It’s 400 wins, but there’s a lot of losses too. The players win, and the players lose, so I’m really zero and zero.”

The Bonnies continue their two-game home stand Saturday as the team takes on Fordham for the second time this season. Tipoff is set for 12:30 p.m. and will air live on USA Network. Radio listeners can tune into the game via the Bonnies Online Network.

halea22@bonaventure.edu

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