Richmond breaks Dayton’s nation-leading win streak 69-64

RICHMOND, Va. -- The Richmond Spiders had all five starters score in double figures in a 69-64 upset of No. 16 Dayton at the Robins Center Saturday night.

Jordan King led the Spiders with 17 points, 15 in the second half. Isaiah Bigelow and Dji Bailey had 12 each while Neal Quinn scored 11 and DeLonnie Hunt added 10.

“We’ve had a few wins over ranked teams since I’ve been the head coach” said Chris Mooney who’s team is now 6-1 against top 25 teams at home since 2009. “This was special and a great win.”

Dayton, which had won 13 in a row coming in, started the game on a 9-0 run as the Spiders missed their first 11 shots. But Richmond’s defense held the Flyers to just 15 first half points total as they took a 5 point lead at the break.

“I thought we got out of character at times offensively,” said Dayton head coach Anthony Grant. “Rushed some things. The foul trouble in the second half was certainly a factor.”

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A-10 preseason player of the year DaRon Holmes II was limited to just 9 points as he struggle with foul trouble most of the game and missed 10 of his 12 field goal attempts. Neal Quinn fouled out for Richmond late in the second half, but stayed in long enough to contribute to what Mooney considered his team’s best defensive effort of the season.

“For a team (Dayton) that has won so many games and is so efficient offensively… that was our best defensive performance,” Mooney said.

Dayton shot just 34% from the field for the game. The Spiders were not much better at only 38% but made 18 of 19 free throws in the second half.

The win extends Richmond’s winning streak to 10 straight and gives them sole possession of first place in the A-10 as the conference’s lone unbeaten team. The Spiders are also 11-0 at home, their best single season home winning streak in program history. And as the students returned for the spring semester, the Spiders had their first court storming of the year.

“We’re thrilled with the win,” Mooney continued. “A lot of credit goes to Dayton. Their sustained excellence allows a game atmosphere like this to happen. You don’t get many opportunities (like this). To take advantage of that and to win those games, it’s something we’re really proud of.”