March 13, 2003

Box Score

By JAMES HANNAH
Associated Press Writer

DAYTON, Ohio - Keith Waleskowski scored 16 points and Sean Finn added 15 as No. 22 Dayton showed little sign of rust after a 12-day layoff in defeating Rhode Island 74-57 Thursday night in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Dayton had 40 points in the paint and 18 second-chance points. The Flyers continually got the ball into their big men, who were able to use their height advantage to knock Rhode Island out of the conference tournament for the third straight year.

Dayton (22-5) advances to the semifinals Friday to play St. Joseph's, which defeated La Salle 68-48 in an earlier game.

In the first half, the Rams (18-11) went for more than 10 minutes without scoring a field goal, shooting just 21 percent. Dayton went on a 16-0 run to take an 25-10 lead with 8:30 left, and led 39-16 at halftime.

It was the Flyers' biggest halftime lead of the season and the fewest points scored against them in the first half.

Rhode Island played a zone defense for much of the game to try and contain Dayton's big men and force the Flyers to shoot from the perimeter. But Dayton shot well from outside, and four Flyers finished in double figures.

Rhode Island staged a comeback in the second half, hitting 11 of their first 12 shots, including all six of their 3-point attempts. The Rams had cut Dayton's lead to nine with 12:26 left before missing their next seven shots.

Brooks Hall and D.J. Stelly hit 3-pointers to put Dayton back in control.

Sophomore guard Dustin Hellenga had 18 points for Rhode Island, including four 3-pointers.

Dayton's victory snapped Rhode Island's three-game winning streak. Dayton is 15-1 on their home court this season, losing only to Xavier.

Dayton had not played since March 1 because St. Bonaventure forfeited its last two games, including Saturday's game against Dayton. The Bonnies were stripped of six wins and barred from the tournament for using center Jamil Terrell, who failed to meet NCAA junior college transfer guidelines.

The Rams had played twice in that time, and Dayton coach Oliver Purnell scheduled practices and scrimmages to try to keep his team in a normal rhythm.