Welcome to The Holy Land of Hoops

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:46 am**

Prior to the advent of national post-season college basketball tournaments, beginning with the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in 1938 and the NCAA Tournament in 1939, virtually no third-party organizations selected basketball national champions. The Official NCAA Men's Basketball Records Book lists title selections of pre-tournament era teams by the Helms Athletic Foundation.

National Champions 1901-1937: Helms Athletic Foundation Basketball Champions – Wikipedia

State schools dominated the first 40 years of college basketball, with St. John’s (1911) and Notre Dame (1927 and 1936) being the only Catholic schools to be named as Helms Athletic Foundation Basketball Champions between 1901 and 1937.
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1938 to 1949: Basketball Emerges at Catholic Schools

1938 - National Invitation Tournament founded.

1939 - NCAA Tournament founded.

The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings (1937-2009)

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade – 1937-38 to 1948-49:

4. Notre Dame
6. DePaul
11. Holy Cross
19. Duquesne
21. St. John’s
27. Loyola-Chicago

1938 to 1949: Basketball emerges at Catholic schools, but Dayton and Xavier have yet to appear on the national scene.

1947 – Tom Blackburn is named head basketball coach at Dayton.

1948 - Coaches are now allowed to speak to players during a timeout.

During the 1940's, fan interest in Dayton and Xavier basketball was very limited. There were no televised college basketball games, and the game attendance at Xavier's Schmidt Fieldhouse and at the Dayton Fairgrounds Coliseum averaged about 2,500 to 3,000 per game.

................................................................. Dayton Fairgrounds Coliseum ................................................................

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The 1950's: Dayton Is Top Catholic Basketball School

1950 – Dayton Flyers basketball moved to the new UD Fieldhouse on November 29th and 5,808-seat sellouts became the norm.

1952 - On February 24th, Dayton beat Xavier 82-80 in a game at the Cincinnati Gardens attended by 12,020 fans - the first game in the rivalry to draw a crowd of more than 10,000. Attendance of 10,000+ for rivalry games would become the norm after the two schools built bigger basketball arena.

The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings (1937-2009)

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - The 1950's:

7. Dayton
13. Duquesne
14. Saint Louis
17. Notre Dame
15. La Salle
22. San Francisco
24. Holy Cross
29. St. John’s
33. Niagara
34. Xavier
37. DePaul
39. Seattle
40. Fordham

Year - NIT Champions and • Runners-up

1950 - CCNY • Bradley
1951 - Brigham Young • Dayton
1952 - La Salle • Dayton
1953 - Seton Hall • St. John's
1954 - Holy Cross • Duquesne
1955 - Duquesne • Dayton
1956 - Louisville • Dayton
1957 - Bradley • Memphis State
1958 - Xavier • Dayton
1959 - St. John's • Bradley

Year – NCAA Tournament Champions and • Runners-up

1950 - CCNY (24-5) • Bradley
1951 - Kentucky (32-2) • Kansas State
1952 - Kansas (28-3) • St. John's
1953 - Indiana (23-3) • Kansas
1954 - La Salle (26-4) • Bradley
1955 - San Francisco (28-1) • LaSalle
1956 - San Francisco (29-0) • Iowa
1957 - North Carolina (32-0) • Kansas
1958 - Kentucky (23-6) • Seattle
1959 - California (25-4) • West Virginia

In 1951 and 1952, Dayton played in their first and second national championship games and lost both of them. In 1955, the NCAA Tournament succeeded the NIT as the more prestigious of the two tournaments when the San Francisco Dons - the greatest team in the first 60 years of college basketball - chose the NCAA Tournament over the NIT, with the country's best teams following suit in the following years.

1956 – On February 19, 1956, Dayton was ranked #2 in the AP Poll (behind # 1 San Francisco) and a convoy of Dayton fans packed the new Interstate 75 en route to the 7-year-old Cincinnati Gardens, where the Flyers beat the Musketeers 85-75 in front of a record crowd of 14,284.

1957 - Jim McCafferty is named head basketball coach at Xavier.

1958 - Adolph Rupp's Kentucky Wildcats (23-6) won the 1958 NCAA Tournament and were acclaimed college basketball's national champions.

1958 - The NIT asked Xavier (15-11) to give back its NIT bid after losing 10 of its final 15 regular-season games, but Xavier refused.

1958 NIT Champions to be Honored February 10th – Xavier University - January 17, 2008

The 1957-58 Musketeers became the first school from Ohio to win a national championship in basketball by winning the 1958 National Invitation Tournament. Led by first-year head coach Jim McCafferty, the Musketeers defeated Niagara, Bradley, and St. Bonaventure to reach the NIT championship game at Madison Square Garden in New York. In the final, Xavier (19-11) defeated rival #11 Dayton 78-74 in overtime. Sport magazine called Xavier's Cinderella run "one of the greatest upsets in basketball history"

DID YOU KNOW ? – University of Dayton

UD won more games than any other school in both the 1950’s and 1960’s.

UD won 435 games between 1950 and 1969 and ranks among the top teams of the 1950’s and 1960’s in Division I history.

The Flyers' .763 (228-71) winning percentage in the 1950’s ranks fifth in the decade.

Their .729 (207-77) winning percentage ranks eighth in the 1960's.
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The 1960's: Dayton Is Top Catholic Basketball School ... Again

The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings (1937-2009)

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - The 1960's:

7. Dayton
10. Villanova
17. St. John’s
18. Saint Louis
19. Providence
22. Saint Joseph’s
24. Loyola-Chicago
36. St. Bonaventure

1964 – On March 6, 1964, 58-year-old Tom Blackburn died of cancer.

1964 - On March 6, 1964, 32-year old Don Donoher was named the Dayton Flyers’ new head coach - only hours after Tom Blackburn’s death.

Don Donoher played three years of varsity basketball for Coach Tom Blackburn at the University of Dayton. Following graduation from Dayton in 1954, Donoher served a two-year enlistment in the United States Army. Returning to Dayton after the end of his service, Donoher accepted a part-time basketball scout position offered by Blackburn. In February 1963, Blackburn made Donoher the University's first full-time assistant coach.

Blackburn had been suffering from cancer for most of the 1963-64 season. On March 6, 1964, Tom Blackburn died from cancer – just 26 hours before the season finally against rival DePaul - and Don Donoher was formally named his successor. However, Dayton credits the entire 1963-64 season to Blackburn.

1964 - On March 7, 1964, AP Poll # 8 DePaul beat Dayton 79-73 at UD Fieldhouse in Don Donoher’s debut as an NCAA head coach.

1967 – Dayton (25-6) lost to UCLA (30-0) in the NCAA Tournament Championship Game. The Flyers were now 0-3 in national championship games.

Dayton Coach Don Donoher was only 35 years old. UCLA Coach John Wooden was becoming a college basketball legend.

1967 – Dayton Flyer’s Don May - Hardwood History

Don May scores over Lew Alcindor in the 1967 NCAA championship game.

In Dayton’s first and only Final Four, 6-4 forward Don May played a game for the ages against Dean Smith’s fourth-ranked North Carolina Tarheels in the 1967 NCAA Tournament Semifinal. May scored over, under, and around defenders en route to sinking thirteen straight field goals (he made 16 of his 22 attempts for the game). May finished with 34 points and 15 rebounds as the Flyers had a relatively easy time, winning 76-62.

Dayton also won the NIT in 1962 and 1968. The NIT had 12 teams in 1962 and 16 teams in 1968. The NCAA Tournament field varied between 22 and 25 teams from 1953 to 1974. Therefore, during this time period, both tournaments could fill their fields with Top 40 teams - which they did. Since 2011, the combined fields of the NCAA Tournament and NIT has been 68 + 32 = 100 teams, so an NIT Championship in the 1960's still meant something, and a lot of very good teams played in the NIT during the 1960's.

1969 - Dayton Flyers basketball moved to the new UD Arena on December 6th and 13,435-seat sellouts became commonplace.

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The 1970's and 1980's: Dayton and Xavier Go in Opposite Directions

Neither Dayton nor Xavier appear on the ESPN/Sagarin Top 40 lists for the 1970's and the 1980's.

1973 - Xavier drops their football program after three consecutive 1-9 seasons, ending their 66-year football rivalry with Dayton.

1973 - Xavier goes 3-23 in basketball – the all-time low for the Xavier Musketeers’ basketball program.

1973 – Xavier’s fans lost interest in the Musketeers’ basketball team. From 1928 until 1951, Xavier hosted their annual Dayton-Xavier game at their on-campus Schmidt Fieldhouse. From 1952 until 1963, Xavier hosted their annual Dayton-Xavier game at the Cincinnati Gardens. On January 3, 1963 Xavier lost to Dayton at the Cincinnati Gardens in a game attended by only 2,163 fans, and so Xavier decided to move the rivalry games back to Schmidt Fieldhouse due to their poor attendance at the Cincinnati Gardens.

From 1964 through 1972, Xavier again hosted their annual Dayton-Xavier game at Schmidt Fieldhouse. In 1973, Xavier decided to move the rivalry game back to the Cincinnati Gardens in order to accommodate more fans than Schmidt Fieldhouse could hold. It was a disastrous decision.

On January 6, 1973, Dayton beat Xavier 98-82 at the Cincinnati Gardens in front of a record-low crowd of 1,235.

1956 – On February 19, 1956, Dayton was ranked #2 in the AP Poll (behind # 1 San Francisco) and a convoy of Dayton fans packed the new Interstate 75 en route to the 7-year-old Cincinnati Gardens, where the Flyers beat the Musketeers 85-75 in front of a record crowd of 14,284.

1974 - On January 9, 1974, Dayton beat Xavier 62-52 in a game at Schmidt Fieldhouse attended by 3,375 fans. After the previous year’s attendance disaster at the Cincinnati Gardens, Xavier decided to host their Dayton-Xavier rivalry games at Schmidt Fieldhouse from 1974 until 1981.

At the same time that Xavier's athletic programs were going off the cliff, the Dayton Flyers were making college basketball history.

1974 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament – Wikipedia

1974 NCAA Tournament: UCLA 111, Dayton 100, 3OT - March 14, 1974 Box Score – Sports Reference.com

Season Records: UCLA 24-3, Dayton 17-8. Two Bruins fouled out, and 5 of the 7 Flyers who played in the game finished it with 4 personal fouls.

UD NCAA Legends: Mike Sylvester’s exhausting, amazing triple-overtime performance against mighty UCLA in 1974 – Dayton Daily News

Mike Sylvester [from Cincinnati Moeller Catholic H.S.] collected 36 points and 13 rebounds in the loss against UCLA, which had won seven straight national championships and was a 20-point favorite.

The game was tied 80-80 after regulation, 88-88 after one overtime and 98-98 after two overtimes. UCLA then pulled away from the Flyers in the third overtime. A Donald Smith shot with 14 seconds left in regulation went in, but UD had just called a timeout. A Smith jumper with 5 seconds left in regulation barley missed.

Dayton’s Impressive Tradition Runs Deep – The Denver Post - April 27, 2016

Dayton reached the national championship game in 1967, losing to UCLA and 7-foot-1 foot sophomore Lew Alcindor, who, of course, later changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

During the 1974 NCAA Tournament, Dayton took UCLA’s Bill Walton-led Final Four team to triple overtime before losing, 111-100.

1984 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament – Wikipedia

In the West Regional Final (Elite Eight game) # 1 Georgetown beat # 10 Dayton 61-49.

Two rounds earlier, Dayton beat #2 seed Oklahoma 89-85, lead by Roosevelt Chapman who finished with a career-high 41 points.

Dayton Flyers’ Legend Roosevelt Chapman Talks about 1984 NCAA Tournament - sportsonearth.com - March 26, 2014

[Excellent, lengthy article preceded by a photo with the caption: "Dayton's Roosevelt Chapman (right) runs into Georgetown's Patrick Ewing during the NCAA Western Regional championship on March 25, 1984."]

Coming out of high school, Roosevelt Chapman said he had more than 100 scholarship offers and chose Dayton over Georgetown. The 1984 Hoyas, though, were too deep, too strong, and too athletic. They held Chapman to 13 points and cruised to a 61-49 victory on their way to the national championship. Chapman's college career was over.

Even today, three decades since his last college game, Roosevelt Chapman remains a Dayton legend. He is the program's all-time leading scorer with more than 2,200 career points and still goes by the nickname "Velvet" that fans bestowed upon him for his even-keeled demeanor and for being "smooth as Velvet."

But the Winds of Change blew through Southwest Ohio, seeing the basketball fortunes of Dayton and Xavier go in opposite directions.

The 1985-86 season was the first of nine seasons for former Xavier coach Pete Gillen, who quickly led the Musketeers to national prominence with 7 NCAA Tournament appearances in his first 8 seasons at Xavier. Pete Gillen was then succeeded at Xavier by Skip Prosser (1994-2001, 4 NCAA appearances), Thad Matta (2001-2004, 3 NCAA appearances), Sean Miller (2004-2009, 4 NCAA appearances), and Chris Mack (2009-present, 7 NCAA appearances).

Xavier Musketeers Men's Basketball: Season-by-Season Results – Wikipedia

1986-87 season - A three-point shot was introduced at 19'-9".

Following the conclusion of the 1988-89 season, Dayton fired legendary coach Don Donoher. It was the most controversial and divisive decision in the history of UD athletics. During his tenure at Dayton, Donoher guided the Flyers to the NCAA tournament eight times, reaching the Sweet Sixteen five times, the Elite Eight twice, and the national final once. Additionally, Dayton played in seven NIT post-season tournaments under Donoher, winning the championship in 1968. Donoher is Dayton's all-time winningest coach with a 437-275 record (.614), including a 20-16 post season record (.556).

Donoher-coached teams were noted for their discipline, tenacity, and sound fundamentals, frequently besting teams with greater athleticism. Don Donoher was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015.

In the spring of 1989, the University of Dayton made one of the most disastrous coach-hiring decisions in the history of college basketball when they hired Jim O'Brien, who inherited an NCAA Tournament-bound team, and four years later, led the Flyers to an abysmal 4-26 record with the players he recruited and trained – the all-time low for the Dayton Flyers’ basketball program.
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The 1990's: Xavier Re-emerges on the National Scene

The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings (1937-2009)

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - The 1990's:

20. Georgetown
31. Villanova
32. St. John’s
38. Xavier
39. Providence

It is noteworthy that the only Catholic schools to make the ESPN/Sagarin Top 40 list for the 1990's are now members of the Big East Conference.

In the 1990’s, Xavier recorded 7 regular-season championship, 2 conference tournament championships, 5 NCAA Tournament appearances, 2 NIT appearances, and returned to the ESPN/Sagarin Top 40 list for the first time since the 1950’s.

In the 1990’s, Dayton fell off the college basketball map.

Jim O'Brien (Dayton Flyers Coach 1989-1994)

1989–90 • Dayton • 22–10 (10–4) ==> NCAA Second Round (with players recruited and trained by Don Donoher).
1990–91 • Dayton • 14–15 (8–6)
1991–92 • Dayton • 15–15 (5–5)
1992–93 • Dayton • 4–26 (3–11)
1993–94 • Dayton • 6–21 (1–11) ==> Jim O'Brien was fired at the end of the season and replaced by Oliver Purnell.

1995 - The first season for both Dayton and Xavier in the Atlantic 10 Conference.
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2000-2009: Xavier Basketball Moves Up the Charts

2000 - Xavier Musketeers basketball moved to the new Cintas Center on November 18th and 10,250-seat sellouts became commonplace.

The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings (1937-2009)

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - 2000-2009:

17. Gonzaga
24. Xavier
25. Villanova
28. Notre Dame
29. Georgetown
32. Marquette
35. Boston College
39. Butler

Red-hot Basketball Rivalries Burn Down the House - ESPN - July 2, 2009

1. Kentucky-Louisville
2. Michigan State-Purdue
3. Kentucky-Tennessee
4. North Carolina-Duke
5. Villanova-Pittsburgh

6. Dayton-Xavier

Why It's Hot Now: Under Brian Gregory the Flyers have challenged the Musketeers' three-year reign atop the Atlantic 10, but haven't knocked them off. After Dayton won the first meeting last season, some of the Flyers jumped up on press row, a celebration that resonated with the X players. Before the second game, with the league title on the line, the two teams went chest-to-chest during warm-ups, a confrontation that worked against Dayton and in favor of Xavier, which easily beat the Flyers for the 24th straight time at home. The two campuses are about an hour apart, which means there are plenty of opportunities for the fans to taunt one another.

Upper Hand Historically: Dayton leads the all-time series 81-68, but Xavier has won 31 of the past 42 and seven of the past eight.

7. Oklahoma-Oklahoma State
8. California-Stanford
9. Kansas-Missouri
10. Michigan-Purdue

Xavier continued their domination of the Flyers and the Atlantic 10 Conference under coaches Thad Matta (2001-2004) and Sean Miller (2004-2009) with 8 NCAA Tournament appearances in 10 years, including two Elite 8's (in 2004 and 2008) and a Sweet 16 (in 2009).

Dayton began their return to the college basketball map with NCAA Tournament appearances in 2000, 2003, 2004, and 2009, but won only one NCAA Tournament game (in 2009 over #6 seed West Virginia, coached by Bob Huggins).
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2011 - Dayton hires Archie Miller as the Flyers' new head coach.
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The 2012-13 Season: Xavier's Last in the Atlantic 10 Conference

Atlantic 10 Thriller: Xavier Survives Dayton in Rivalry Game – Bleacher Report/Xavier Basketball – January 31, 2013

In a back-and-forth game from the tipoff that saw the score tied six times and lead change on 13 occasions, the Xavier Musketeers outlasted the Dayton Flyers 66-61 on Wednesday night. It came down to the final minute and a little bit of luck for the Musketeers.

In the 159th instalment of this rivalry, Xavier battled and fought in the game, something Dayton didn’t seem ready for.

Men's Basketball Heads To Dayton Saturday For ESPN2 Showdown With UD - Xavier University – February 14, 2013

Xavier and Dayton have met 159 times, the first time being in the 1919-20 season. The two teams have met 60 times more than any other XU opponent. Xavier is 14-9 overall and 7-3 in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Dayton is 13-11 and 3-7 in the A10.

Flyers & Musketeers Renew Rivalry on Saturday – University of Dayton – February 14, 2013

Before a sold-out UD Arena crowd, the University of Dayton Flyers host their long-time rival Xavier Musketeers Saturday at noon ET on Tom Blackburn Court. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2, carried by WHIO Radio and is available with live video, stats, and audio at DaytonFlyers.com.

SERIES STUFF
UD leads the all-time series 84-75, but lost the earlier matchup at Xavier on January 30th. In addition to this series being the most games against any opponent for both schools, the first Xavier varsity basketball game was against Dayton on Feb. 20, 1920 (UD won 24-18). The two teams have met at least once every year since 1946-47. Saturday’s game also features the 58th contest with the Blackburn/McCafferty Trophy on the line. Since 1980-81, the winning team receives the “Black/Mac” trophy, which is named after the two legendary coaches who put their two schools on the basketball map - Dayton’s Tom Blackburn and XU’s Jim McCafferty. The trophy series only covers regular season meetings, and XU leads the trophy series 37-20.

Christon Scores 17 Points As Xavier Fall At Dayton – Xavier University – February 16, 2013

DAYTON - Semaj Christon scored a game-high-tying 17 points for Xavier (14-10, 7-4 in A10) in a 70-59 road loss to Dayton (14-11, 4-7 in A10) on Saturday.

Butler, Dayton, Xavier to Join Big East Next Season - Lenn Robbins, New York Post – March 13, 2013

Dayton will join Butler and Xavier next season in the new Big East, which is said to be looking at corporate offices in the metropolitan area.
Creighton and St. Louis come on board for 2014-15.

....

...

Xavier University Joins The New Big East – Xavier University - March 20, 2013

CINCINNATI --- Xavier University President Michael J. Graham, S.J., announced today that Xavier is joining a 10-team conference with fellow private schools Butler, Creighton, DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John's, Seton Hall, and Villanova.

New Big East Adds Three, Seals Deal With Fox – USA Today - March 20, 2013

The league, which will keep the Big East name after a negotiation with the football schools, begins play with a 10-team lineup in 2013-14. The league is expected to grow to 12, perhaps as early as 2014-15. Atlantic 10 members Saint Louis and Dayton are thought to be primary targets if/when the Big East expands again. The league also will continue to call Madison Square Garden in New York the home for its men's basketball tournament.

Multiple reports have valued the deal at $500 million over 12 years, which would be more money per school for the Catholic 7 than they earned from television in the old Big East.

Despite one-year hiatus, Xavier-Dayton rivalry is likely to be revived - Jeff Eisenberg, The Dagger - June 5, 2013

Even though Xavier released its schedule Tuesday without long-time rival Dayton on it for the first time in 68 years, it doesn't sound like the hiatus is likely to last too long. A Xavier spokesman didn't immediately return an email seeking comment, but Archie Miller's comments are a positive sign this rivalry isn't likely to go the way of others killed off by conference realignment. Kansas will not schedule Missouri after the Tigers left for the SEC, Duke won't play Big Ten-bound Maryland after this season, and Syracuse and Georgetown have yet to commit to a non-league series.

The series between Xavier and Dayton may not be quite as nationally relevant as those, but there's plenty of history between the two long-time foes.

They've faced one-another at least once a year since the 1945-46 season, with the Musketeers winning 28 straight at home in the series but the Flyers boasting a 13-6 home record since the teams joined the Atlantic 10 in 1996.

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November 2013 to April 2017: The Current Big East's First Four Seasons

Second Chance Points Help No. 23 Xavier Soar Past Dayton – Xavier University - November 29, 2015

Musketeers never trail in championship game of AdvoCare Invitational

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – The No. 23 Xavier Musketeers crashed the offensive boards to run away from the Dayton Flyers, winning 90-61 in the championship game of the AdvoCare Invitational. The Musketeers moved to 7-0 on the season.

Chris Mack – Wikipedia

Chris Mack’s Head Coaching Record

Season • Team • Overall W-L (Conference W-L) • Conference Standing • Postseason

2009–10 • Xavier • 26–9 (14–2) • T–1st in A10 • NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2010–11 • Xavier • 24–8 (15–1) • 1st in A10 • NCAA Second Round
2011–12 • Xavier • 23–13 (10–6) • 3rd in A10 • NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2012–13 • Xavier • 17–14 (9–7) • T–6th in A10

2013–14 • Xavier • 22–13 (10–8) • T–3rd in BE • NCAA First Four
2014–15 • Xavier • 23–14 (9–9) • 6th in BE • NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2015–16 • Xavier • 28–6 (14–4) • 2nd in BE • NCAA Second Round
2016–17 • Xavier •24–14 (9–9) • 7th in BE • NCAA Elite Eight

Chris Mack’s Head Coaching Totals: Overall: 187–91 (.673), Conference: 90–46 (.662)

In the 2016-17 season, Dayton's average home attendance was 13,018 and Xavier's average home attendance was 10,282.

2016-17 RPI Rankings - HLOH post dated April 5, 2017

4-Year Average Final RPI Ranking - Team ( 2013-14 RPI Ranking • 2014-15 RPI Ranking • 2015-16 RPI Ranking • 2016-17 RPI Ranking )

4 - Villanova ( 8 • 6 • 2 • 3 )
29 - Xavier ( 56 • 28 • 8 • 27 )
31 - Dayton ( 33 • 29 • 25 • 36 )
41 - Providence ( 46 • 25 • 32 • 61 )

62 - Butler ( 154 • 30 • 53 • 13 )
75 - Creighton ( 17 • 157 • 94 • 32 )
77 - Seton Hall ( 136 • 103 • 23 • 46 )
79 - Georgetown ( 75 • 24 • 103 • 115 )

104 - Marquette ( 94 • 145 • 111 • 67 )
131 - St. John's ( 82 • 52 • 245 • 148 )
197 - DePaul ( 157 • 197 • 201 • 236 )

2014 NCAA Tournament
Dayton (#11 seed) - Beat #6 Ohio State, beat #3 Syracuse, beat #10 Stanford, lost to #1 Florida in Elite 8.
Xavier (#12 seed) - Lost to #12 NC State in First Four.

2015 NCAA Tournament
Dayton (#11 seed) - Beat #11 Boise State in First Four, beat #6 Providence, lost to # 3 Oklahoma in Round of 32.
Xavier (#6 seed) – Beat #11 Ole Miss, beat #14 Georgia State, lost to #2 Arizona in Sweet 16.

2016 NCAA Tournament
Dayton (#7 seed) – Lost to #10 Syracuse in Round of 64.
Xavier (#2 seed) - Beat #15 Weber State, lost to #7 Wisconsin in Round of 32.

2017 NCAA Tournament
Dayton (#7 seed) – Lost to #10 Wichita State in Round of 64.
Xavier (#11 seed) – Beat #6 Maryland, beat #3 Florida State, beat #2 Arizona, lost to #1 Gonzaga in Elite 8.

4-Year NCAA Tournament Totals
Dayton 2014-2017: 5-4 in the NCAA Tournament, earning 9 credits worth about $1.6 million each (total: $14.4 million).
Xavier 2014-2017: 6-4 in the NCAA Tournament, earning 10 credits worth about $1.6 million each (total: $16.0 million).

4-Year Big East Conference Totals – HLOH thread April 14th to 28th, 2017 (31 posts)
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Dayton-Xavier Series Summary

. . .

Xavier Musketeers 2016-17 Media Guide.pdf – Page 112: All-Time Series Results – Dayton

Dayton Flyers 2016-17 Media Guide.pdf – Page 167: All-Time Series Results – Xavier

Dayton Flyers 2016-17 Media Guide wrote:
Dayton’s Opponent – No. of Games Played

Xavier - 161 games played from 1920 to 2015. Dayton leads series 85-76 (.528).
DePaul - 69 games played from 1920 to 2004. Dayton leads series 35-34 (.507)
Marquette - 35 games played from 1966 to 2008. Marquette leads series 21-14 (.600), but Dayton won 5 out of the last 6 games between 1998 and 2008.
Butler - 23 games played from 1924 to 2013. Butler leads series 13-10 (.565).
Creighton – 11 games played from 1961 to 2009. Dayton leads series 7-4 (.636).
Seton Hall – 11 games played from 1948 to 2011. Dayton leads series 7-4 (.636).
Villanova – 10 games played from 1953 to 2009. Series tied 5-5.
St. John’s – 10 games played from 1939 to 1974. Series tied 5-5.
Providence – 8 games played from 1963 to 2015. Dayton leads series 6-2 (.750).
Georgetown – 3 games played from 1952 to 1984. Georgetown leads series 2-1 (.667).

Dayton’s W-L record vs. BIG EAST teams (341 games from 1920 to 2015):

Butler 10-13
Creighton 7-4
DePaul 35-34
Georgetown 1-2
Marquette 14-21
Providence 6-2
St. John’s 5-5
Seton Hall 7-4
Villanova 5-5
Xavier 85-76

Dayton vs. BIG EAST teams from 1920 to 2015: 175-166 (.513)

Dayton’s Impressive Tradition Runs Deep – The Denver Post - April 27, 2016

In the past seven years, Dayton is 24-11 (.686) against programs in BCS conferences.

UD LEGENDS SERIES: THE 18 GREATEST GAMES IN UD ARENA HISTORY – University of Dayton - November 11, 2005

• Dayton 79, Providence 77 -- 5 OT (January 28, 1982)
• Dayton 72, DePaul 71 (February 18, 1984)
• Dayton 98, Xavier 89 -- MCC Final (March 10, 1990)
• Dayton 80, Villanova 78 (December 22, 2002)

A review of the Dayton-Xavier series shows three distinct eras of team dominance:

1920-1949 – Dayton and Xavier played 28 games in 28 seasons. Xavier won the Early series 20-8 (.714). Series suspended 1943-45 due to World War II.

1950-1985 – Dayton and Xavier played 71 games in 35 seasons. Dayton won the Middle series 59-12 (.831).

1986-2015 – Dayton and Xavier played 62 games in 29 seasons. Xavier won the Recent series 44-18 (.710) starting with Pete Gillen's first season at XU.

The Recent series is defined by two very important coach-hiring decisions made by Xavier University and the University of Dayton in 1985 and 1989, respectively. Pete Gillen proved to be an outstanding coach, and he led the Musketeers to 7 NCAA Tournament appearances and 1 NIT in his 9 seasons at Xavier - taking the Xavier basketball program to greater heights than it had ever experienced previously, and he blazed the trail for the long succession of great Xavier coaches and great Xavier basketball teams which followed.

On the other hand, Jim O'Brien was the worst coach in the history of the Flyers, and he led Dayton's once-proud basketball program to ruin.

By the time that Jim O'Brien led the 1992–93 Flyers to an abysmal 4-26 record, Pete Gillen’ stellar success enabled Xavier to land far better high school recruits than Dayton, thereby prolonging the disparity of Xavier and Dayton in the Recent series. The humiliation became complete when a number of the top high school prospects from the Dayton area turned down scholarship offers from UD, and instead chose to play basketball for the Xavier. With very few exception, Xavier has continued to out-recruit Dayton for each of the past 31 seasons. Continued success has its rich rewards, and Xavier has been on a roll for the last 3 decades.

Below is a listing of the notable head coaches for Dayton and Xavier, along with their career win totals for their respective schools:

Dayton Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)

Tom Blackburn (1948–1964) • 352–141 (.714)

Don Donoher (1964-1989) • 437–275 (.614)

Jim O'Brien (1989–1994) • 61–87 (.412) • 27–37 (.422)

Oliver Purnell (1994-2003) • 155–116 (.572) • 72–68 (.514)

Brian Gregory (2003-2011) • 172–94 (.647) • 70–58 (.547)

Archie Miller (2011-2017) • 139–63 (.688) • 68–34 (.667)

Anthony Grant (2017 - ?) • 0-0 • 0-0

Xavier Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)

James McCafferty (1957–1963) • 91–71 (.562)

[five coaches] (1963-1985) • 259-332 (.438) • 35–35 (.500)

Pete Gillen (1985–1994) • 202–75 (.729) • 83–25 (.769)

Skip Prosser (1995–2001) • 148–65 (.695) • 81–27 (.750)

Thad Matta (2001–2004) • 78–23 (.772) • 39–9 (.813)

Sean Miller (2004–2009) • 120–47 (.719) • 57–23 (.713)

Chris Mack (2009-2017) • 187–91 (.673) • 90–46 (.662)

During the 2017-18 season, Chris Mack will get his 16th win of the season, which will also be his 203rd career win - surpassing Pete Gillen as Xavier’s winningest head coach.

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:48 am**

History of the Former Dayton-Xavier Rivalry – Supplemental Posts

1. Dayton’s Game Results vs. Xavier During the Middle series (1950-1985)
2. Who Were Dayton’s REAL Rivals During the Middle series (1950-1985) ?
3. When were Dayton and Xavier in the same conference?
4. Do Dayton and Xavier still compete for high school students as 'customers' ?
5. Exploding the "Southwest Ohio College Basketball TV Market" Myth.
6. Exposing the Great Hypocrisy.
7. Final Remarks.
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1. Dayton’s Game Results vs. Xavier During the Middle series (1950-1985).

Jan 22, 1950 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 65 55. Attendance: 4,500
Feb 12, 1950 Fairgrounds Coliseum - Won 59 42. Attendance: 3,500
Mar 2, 1950 Cleveland Arena OCT - Won 59 51. Attendance: 1,114
Feb 11, 1951 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 63 57. Attendance: 4,800
Mar 3, 1951 UD Fieldhouse - Won 77 53. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 27, 1952 UD Fieldhouse - Won 67 60. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 24, 1952 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 82 80. Attendance: 12,020
Jan 18, 1953 Cincinnati Gardens - Lost 68 70. Attendance: 3,876
Feb 22, 1953 UD Fieldhouse - Won 81 63. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 24, 1954 UD Fieldhouse - Won 66 58. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 21, 1954 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 81 63. Attendance: 7,746
Jan 30, 1955 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 91 80. Attendance: 10,541
Feb 20, 1955 UD Fieldhouse - Won 71 60. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 21, 1956 UD Fieldhouse - Won 81 73. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 19, 1956 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 85 75. Attendance: 14,284
Mar 20, 1956 MSG NIT - Won 72 68. Attendance: 11,231
Jan 13, 1957 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 61 59. Attendance: 7,130
Feb 20, 1957 UD Fieldhouse - Lost 65 68. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 29, 1958 UD Fieldhouse - Won 74 59. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 16, 1958 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 64 58. Attendance: 5,291
Mar 22, 1958 MSG OT NIT - Lost 74 78. Attendance: 12,020
Jan 14, 1959 UD Fieldhouse - Won 60 56. Attendance: 5,808
Mar 8, 1959 Cincinnati Gardens - Lost 69 71. Attendance: 5,491

Jan 6, 1960 UD Fieldhouse - Won 54 51. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 24, 1960 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 91 82. Attendance: 5,298
Jan 28, 1961 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 87 64. Attendance: 4,491
Feb 22, 1961 UD Fieldhouse - Won 94 71. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 3, 1962 UD Fieldhouse - Won 64 48. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 7, 1962 Cincinnati Gardens - Lost 71 72. Attendance: 4,266
Jan 3, 1963 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 69 64. Attendance: 2,163
Feb 6, 1963 UD Fieldhouse - Won 79 63. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 4, 1964 UD Fieldhouse - Lost 94 103. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 1, 1964 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Lost 81 82. Attendance: 5,488
Jan 4, 1965 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 83 79. Attendance: 4,809
Feb 3, 1965 UD Fieldhouse - Won 112 81. Attendance: 5,808
Jan 3, 1966 UD Fieldhouse - Won 105 79. Attendance: 5,808
Feb 9, 1966 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 76 73. Attendance: 3,600
Jan 4, 1967 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 75 72. Attendance: 4,802
Feb 8, 1967 UD Fieldhouse - Won 70 66. Attendance: 5,882
Jan 3, 1968 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 83 80. Attendance: 3,765
Feb 7, 1968 UD Fieldhouse - Won 64 56. Attendance: 5,882
Jan 4, 1969 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Lost 55 59. Attendance: 3,881
Jan 27, 1969 UD Fieldhouse - Won 72 64. Attendance: 5,882

Jan 3, 1970 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 94. Attendance: 76 3,118
Feb 4, 1970 UD Arena - Won 90 78. Attendance: 12,542
Feb 15, 1971 UD Arena - Won 70 50. Attendance: 13,274
Feb 27, 1971 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 82 76. Attendance: 4,381
Dec 11, 1971 UD Arena - Won 69 66. Attendance: 13,127
Feb 5, 1972 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Lost 66 77. Attendance: 4,488
Jan 6, 1973 Cincinnati Gardens - Won 98 82. Attendance: 1,235
Mar 3, 1973 UD Arena - Won 87 81. Attendance: 12,348
Jan 9, 1974 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 62 52. Attendance: 3,375
Feb 23, 1974 UD Arena - Won 86 55. Attendance: 11,702
Dec 7, 1974 UD Arena - Won 75 66. Attendance: 12,237
Feb 19, 1975 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 78 67. Attendance: 2,315
Jan 3, 1976 UD Arena - Won 80 71. Attendance: 11,803
Feb 28, 1976 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 77 75. Attendance: 3,800
Jan 8, 1977 UD Arena - Won 75 59. Attendance: 12,318
Mar 3, 1977 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 86 48. Attendance: 3,000
Jan 7, 1978 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Lost 56 58. Attendance: 3,800
Feb 28, 1978 UD Arena - Won 90 62. Attendance: 10,675
Dec 30, 1978 UD Arena - Won 67 66. Attendance: 13,152
Feb 10, 1979 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Won 75 54. Attendance: 4,200

Jan 19, 1980 Schmidt Fieldhouse - Lost 59 73. Attendance: 3,300
Feb 26, 1980 UD Arena - Won 73 60. Attendance: 9,676
Jan 10, 1981 Riverfront Coliseum - Won 74 72. Attendance: 9,630
Feb 22, 1981 UD Arena - Won 73 64. Attendance: 11,384
Dec 12, 1981 UD Arena - Won 62 61 OT. Attendance: 9,630
Dec 11, 1982 - UD Arena - Won 63 53. Attendance: 10,412
Feb 29, 1984 - Cincinnati Gardens - Lost 61 72. Attendance: 6,429
Mar 3, 1985 - UD Arena - Won 66 56. Attendance: 13,243

1950-1985 – Dayton and Xavier played 71 games in 35 seasons.

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:50 am**

2. Who Were Dayton’s REAL Rivals During the Middle series (1950-1985) ?

A review of the Dayton-Xavier series shows three distinct eras of team dominance:

1920-1949 – Dayton and Xavier played 28 games in 28 seasons. Xavier won the Early series 20-8 (.714). Series suspended 1943-45 due to World War II.

1950-1985 – Dayton and Xavier played 71 games in 35 seasons. Dayton won the Middle series 59-12 (.831).

1986-2015 – Dayton and Xavier played 62 games in 29 seasons. Xavier won the Recent series 44-18 (.710) starting with Pete Gillen's first season at XU.

During the Early series, neither Xavier nor Dayton attracted any national attention, and interest in their basketball games was very limited. Their games were not televised. The rivalry between Dayton and Xavier up until the end of the 1948-49 season might best be described as "a congenial collegiate comradery between two small Catholic schools in Southwest Ohio" . Think striped blazers, straw boaters, and gin & tonic. Xavier dominated Dayton during the Early series, but few people cared. Taking in a Dayton-Xavier game was a fun day out, but not much more.

During the 1950’s, Xavier had a Top 40 basketball program and won the 1958 NIT Championship, but the Flyers still got the better of the Musketeers in the Middle series, and in a very lopsided tally.

Following Xavier’s 71-66 loss to Morehead State in the First Round of the 1961 NCAA Tournament, the Musketeers’ basketball program went into a 25-year period of decline and mediocrity with few shining moments, which did not end until the arrival of Coach Pete Gillen in the 1985-86 season.

Dayton remained the top Catholic basketball school in the 1960’s, and Dayton’s fans began to view their annual games with Xavier as "charity games" rather than top-level competition with a true rival. Stronger opponents from other nearby schools sparked the interest of Dayton’s students, alumni, and broader fanbase, and they became Dayton’s true rivals during the Middle series.

... which leads us back to the original question: Who Were Dayton’s REAL Rivals During the Middle series (1950-1985) ?

Notre Dame, Louisville, Cincinnati, DePaul, Duquesne, and Miami (OH), all of whom had better basketball teams than Xavier during the Middle series.

The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings (1937-2009)

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - The 1950's:

7. Dayton
9. Louisville
10. Cincinnati
13. Duquesne
17. Notre Dame
34. Xavier
37. DePaul

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - The 1960's:

2. Cincinnati
7. Dayton
14. Louisville

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - The 1970's:

8. Notre Dame
28. Cincinnati

The Top 40 Programs of Each Decade - The 1980's:

6. Louisville
15. DePaul
30. Notre Dame
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Miami (OH) never appeared on a ESPN/Sagarin Top 40 Programs of Each Decade list, but the Redskins (as they were then known) appeared in 11 NCAA Tournaments from 1950 to 1985, going 3-13 in 16 NCAA Tournament games with notable wins over Notre Dame in 1969 and over Marquette in overtime in 1978. In the same 1950 to 1985 time period, Xavier appeared in 2 NCAA Tournaments going 0-2.

From 1950 to 1985, Dayton played Miami (OH) 72 times with the Flyers compiling a 47-25 (.653) record against the Redskins.

From 1950 to 1985, Dayton played Xavier 71 times with the Flyers compiling a 59-12 (.831) record against the Musketeers.
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Dayton played Notre Dame five times between 1908 and 1920 (going 2-3), but the two teams did not meet again until 1968.

1968 National Invitation Tournament - Madison Square Garden

March 16, 1968 • Madison Sq. Garden • NIT First Round • Dayton beats West Virginia 87-68. Attendance: 16,127
March 19, 1968 • Madison Sq. Garden • NIT Quarterfinal • Dayton beats Fordham 61- 60. Attendance: 18,683
March 21, 1968 • Madison Sq. Garden • NIT Semifinal • Dayton beats Notre Dame 76-74 in OT. Attendance: 19,500
March 23, 1968 • Madison Sq. Garden • NIT Championship Game • Dayton beats Kansas 61-48. Attendance: 19,008

Following their thrilling NIT Semifinal game, Dayton and Notre Dame decided to renew the series – much to the delight of CBS Sports, who regularly featured the rivalry on Saturday afternoon’s Game of the Week. (Recall that iduring the previous March, Dayton lost to UCLA in the 1967 NCAA Tournament Championship game.)

March 4, 1974 - Unranked Dayton stomped AP# 2 Notre Dame by 15 points 97-82 in front of 13,528 at UD Arena.

February 1, 1977 - Notre Dame blew out Dayton 97-64 in front of 11,293 at The Joyce Center. When the game ended, some Notre Dame students lobbed a dozen or so rolls of toilet paper into the 'visitors' section, which was filled with departing UD students and alumni.

In an interview the day before the 1978 rematch, Notre Dame Coach Digger Phelps referred to the previous year’s 33-point blow-out of Dayton, and was less-than-complimentary about the Flyers.

March 4, 1978 (2:00 PM Saturday) - Unranked Dayton beat AP# 7 Notre Dame 66-59 in front of 13,458 at UD arena in the nationally-televised CBS Sports’ Game of the Week.

At game time, Notre Dame Coach Digger Phelps was introduced, and as he walked onto Blackburn Court, literally thousands of rolls of toilet paper came cascading down from the stands. The referee immediately called a technical foul on Dayton’s fans, and ordered the UD Arena staff to clear the court as quickly as possible. It took the maintenance crew of 20 about 20 minutes to do so.

When the court was finally cleared, the referee wisely cancelled introductions and directed that the two teams return from their locker rooms for the playing of the National Anthem. When Digger Phelps re-entered Blackburn Court, he was again buried by thousands of rolls of toilet paper. The referee quickly called another technical foul on Dayton’s fans, and ordered the UD Arena staff to clear the court again. It took another 20 minutes to do so. The announcer at UD Arena pleaded with the high-spirited crowd to cease and desist with throwing objects onto the court, and warned of the possibility of Dayton being forced to forfeit the game before it even started if the bad behaviour continued.

Both teams then re-entered the court without incident, the National Anthem was played, and both teams took up their positions at Notre Dame’s free-throw lane. The Fighting Irish made 3 of 4 free throws and got possession of the ball. It was now after 3:00 PM, and CBS’ national TV coverage of the game was into its second hour. Notre Dame was up 3-0 and inbounded the ball. Dayton got a quick steal and a layup at the other end. There was still 19:50 left to play in the first half, and Notre Dame led 3-2. The rest is a golden moment in Dayton Flyers' basketball history.

UD Fans’ Stories with Photos - Dayton Daily News - November 13, 2015

This photo is from March 1978 Flyers vs. Notre Dame game at the Arena and of the student section storming the court after the win. As a student at the time, my housemate and I rarely missed a home game. Digger Phelps was the ND coach at the time and was bombarded with toilet paper rolls when introduced. He was not a happy camper and went right over to Don Donoher and got in his face about it.

Of course this whipped the crowd into a total frenzy. Chants of "Sit down Digger! Sit down Digger!" were repeated several times during the game and every time he stood up to question a referee’s call. What a game! If you look closely at the picture, you can see a toilet paper roll flying through the air. Great memories of watching Jim Paxson in those years.

Now THAT’s a rivalry !

In March 1984, Dayton beat Notre Dame 80-70 at UD Arena and Dayton lost to Georgetown in an NCAA Tournament Elite 8 game. Dayton was on a roll (or so it seemed). Dayton and Notre Dame then agreed to "double-up " and change the series from annual games to a twice-a-year, home-and-away series. Most unfortunately, the Flyers started their journey to the bottom in 1985, and the series quickly became uncompetitive, with Notre Dame going 16-4 against Dayton in the next 10 seasons. In 1995, Dayton and Notre Dame agreed to discontinue the series, with Notre Dame winning 28 of the 41 games played.

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:50 am**

3. When were Dayton and Xavier in the same conference?

For 5 season in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference 1988-89 through 1992–93, and 18 seasons in the A10 1995–96 through 2012-13.

From 1920 through the 1978-79 season Xavier was an Independent in basketball. In 1978-79, Xavier (and Butler) became Charter Members of the new Midwestern City Conference (which changed its name to the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in 1985-86), where Xavier remained through the end of the 1994-95 season.

From 1920 through the 1987–88 season Dayton was an Independent in basketball. In 1988-89, Dayton joined Xavier, Butler, Saint Louis and others in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference for 5 seasons, until the conclusion of the 1992–93 season. Marquette was also a member of the MCC in the 1989-90 and 1990-91 seasons.

In the 1993-94 and 1994–95 seasons, Dayton joined Cincinnati, DePaul, Marquette, Memphis, Saint Louis, and University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB) in the Great Midwest Conference (GMC), where Dayton was not competitive with the very poor roster that Coach Jim O’Brien brought to the conference.

1993–94 - Dayton: 6–21 (1–11); last place in GMC ==> Jim O'Brien was fired and replaced by Oliver Purnell.

1994–95 - Dayton: 7–20 (0–12); last place in GMC ==> Oliver Purnell didn’t stand a chance with the poor quality of players he inherited from Jim O’Brien.

1995–96 to 2012-13 - Dayton and Xavier are members of the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:51 am**

4. Do Dayton and Xavier still compete for high school students as 'customers' ?

Yes. And that’s still a major reason for the very strong animosity toward the University of Dayton by many of Xavier’s students and alumni. Many of them were refused admission to UD before they decided to attend Xavier, and that situation is very likely to continue indefinitely.

Xavier University - Admissions - CollegeData.com

Overall Admission Rate: 73% of 11,605 applicants were admitted = 8,489 admitted students.
Students Enrolled: 1,291 (15%) of 8,489 admitted students enrolled.

ACT Scores of Enrolled Freshmen
ACT Composite: 25 average
Range of middle 50%: 22-27

Score of 30 - 36: 11%
Score of 24 - 29: 53%
Score of 18 - 23: 35%
Score of 12 - 17: 1%

University of Dayton - Admissions - CollegeData.com

Overall Admission Rate: 58% of 16,968 applicants were admitted = 9,760 admitted students.
Students Enrolled: 2,604 (27%) of 9,760 admitted students enrolled.

ACT Scores of Enrolled Freshmen
ACT Composite: 27 average
Range of middle 50%: 24-29

Score of 30 - 36: 24%
Score of 24 - 29: 56%
Score of 18 – 23: 20%
Score of 12 - 17: 0%

Xavier University – Money Matters - CollegeData.com

Cost of Attendance: $50,880 • Tuition and Fees: $36,150

University of Dayton – Money Maters - CollegeData.com

Cost of Attendance: $57,370 • Tuition and Fees: $40,940

Xavier University - Wikipedia

Endowment: $150.9 million
Total Academic Staff: 667
Total Number of Students: 6,650 (4,485 Undergraduate and 2,165 Postgraduate)
Campus: Urban, 190 acres

University of Dayton - Wikipedia

Endowment: $500.4 million
Total Academic Staff: 1,017
Total Number of Students: 10,549 (8,353 Undergraduate and 2,196 Postgraduate)
Campus: Urban, 388 acres

Some third-party websites use factual information (such as that above) to establish their Rankings of Catholic Schools:

50 Best Catholic Colleges - Best-Catholic-Colleges.com

Welcome to Best-Catholic-Colleges.com, your friendly source of facts about Catholic schools in USA. With our site you will find contact information, majors availability, and diploma selection, as well as nationwide, regional, and state rankings, campus safety ratings, and lists of local competitors for 253 Catholic schools.

Unlike many other sites promoting Catholic schools, our site is not sponsored by any school or college group. This allows us to remain unbiased when analyzing various governmental and independent sources of college data and to provide both positive and negative information about Catholic schools.

2015 Ranking - Top 50 Catholic schools:

12. University of Dayton
28. Xavier University

2017 Best Catholic Colleges in America - Niche.com Best Catholic Colleges

The 2017 Best Catholic Colleges ranking is based on key statistics and student reviews using data from the U.S. Department of Education. The top-ranked Catholic colleges are leading academic institutions that offer students an education and college experience rooted in Catholic traditions and faith. Click here to read more on how this ranking was calculated.

2017 Ranking - Top 168 Catholic Schools

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price • SAT Range

9. University of Dayton • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 59% • Net Price: $32,965 • SAT Range: 1040-1250
29. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 73% • Net Price: $28,111 • SAT Range: 980-1200

Forbes - America's Top 650 Colleges – 2017 Rankings

# 171 - University of Dayton (#85 in Research Universities)

# 254 - Xavier University

But I digress ...

Back to the original question: Do Dayton and Xavier still compete for high school students as 'customers' ?

Absolutely. The two schools have been competing for high school students for well over a hundred years, and the University of Dayton has always maintained a significant lead in both Academics and University Finances, which are by far the two most important headings for the President and the Board of Directors/Board of Trustees of a Private university.

Xavier deserves great credit and sincere congratulations for the sustained success of their basketball program over the past 31 seasons, but great basketball is not the purpose of a Private university.

Xavier’s Administration has a duty to act in the best interests of Xavier’s students and alumni. That means they must do everything within their power and influence to prevent the University of Dayton from joining the Big East. When comparing UD with Xavier, UD wins in every important category except 'Conference Affiliation'. The Big East brand name and great success of its basketball programs are a very valuable asset for its member institutions. It is the only advantage that Xavier has over Dayton, and an advantage that Xavier won’t willingly give away.

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:52 am**

5. Exploding the "Southwest Ohio College Basketball TV Market" Myth.

On various HLOH threads, I have seen Xavier fans post "Xavier already has the Southwest Ohio College Basketball TV Market covered" and similar nonsense. Assertions such as these are absurd for at least four reasons:

1. There is no such thing as the "Southwest Ohio College Basketball TV Market".

2. The Dayton College Basketball TV Market has a different geographic definition than the Cincinnati College Basketball TV Market.

3. The Dayton College Basketball TV Market has a very different TV Market Share pie chart than the Cincinnati College Basketball TV Market.

4. A private university cannot claim whole or partial ownership of a TV Market, nor entitlement to it. Their basketball team has to earn it on a weekly basis by attracting TV viewers to their games.

On April 5, 2016, Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
hoops22 wrote:
Dayton. We know how much Xavier hates them, which makes for a terrific rivalry game right off the bat, even if X normally wins the game. They'll also bring plenty of people to the BET, and while it's not a big market they're in, they do dominate it.

And by a big margin, with Wright State, Ohio State, Cincinnati, and Xavier and all getting very small slices of the Dayton College Basketball TV Market pie.

Dayton Moves up to Sixth Among Top College Basketball TV Markets – Dayton Flyers.com - March 9, 2016
According to research analyzed by ESPN, Dayton's 1.7 market share was only behind Louisville (4.8), Raleigh-Durham (2.7), Kansas City (2.5), Greensboro-High Point (2.5), and Cincinnati (1.8).

Nielsen - Local Television Market Universe Estimates - January 1, 2016

Nielsen - Local Television Market Universe Estimates - updated January 1, 2017

Interactive US Map of Nielsen Media Markets - updated February 9, 2017

Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout – Wikipedia

The Crosstown Shootout is an annual men's college basketball game played between the University of Cincinnati Bearcats and Xavier University Musketeers. The two schools are separated by only 3 miles, making the archrivalry one of the closest major rivalries in the country. The game was first played in 1927, and has been played every year since 1946. In recent years, the game has been sponsored by Skyline Chili [and has been dominated by Xavier].
UC currently leads the series with a record of 50–34 (.595).

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The economic decline of the Dayton metro area began in the early 1970’s, sending waves of economic refugees from shrinking Dayton to booming Cincinnati in a mass exodus which continues to the present day. Since the early 1970’s it is likely that over 100,000 people have moved from the Dayton metro area to the Cincinnati metro area. It is worth noting that the School of Engineering is the jewel in the University of Dayton’s crown, and Xavier University does not offer Engineering, so Xavier is not filling any of the many new Engineering jobs which the Cincinnati metro area generates each year.

Cincinnati has the fastest growing economy in the Midwestern United States. The Gross Metro Product is $119 Billion. Several Fortune 500 companies are headquartered in Cincinnati, such as Procter & Gamble, The Kroger Company, and Macy's, Inc., among others. General Electric has headquartered both their GE Aviation business and their Global Operations center in Cincinnati. The Kroger Company employs 21,646 people locally, making it the largest employer in the city, and the University of Cincinnati is the second largest at 16,000.

Cincinnati’s Fortune 500 companies can and do hire the best graduates available from the many universities within a hundred miles or so, any beyond. The very prosperous Cincinnati metro area economy generates many more times the number of jobs than UC and XU graduates can fill, and it is quite reasonable to presume that most of those jobs are taken up by graduates from the many nearby universities:

University Enrolments and Distance from Xavier

44,338 - University of Cincinnati (3 miles from Xavier)
24,505 – Miami (OH) University (36 miles from Xavier)
10,920 - University of Dayton (56 miles from Xavier)
30,720 - University of Kentucky (89 miles from Xavier)
66,046 – Ohio State University (102 miles from Xavier)
22,640 - University of Louisville (106 miles from Xavier)
6,650 - Xavier University

2017 Best Colleges in America - Niche.com Best Colleges

# 71 - Ohio State University
# 157 - Miami (OH)
# 158 - University of Dayton
# 219 - University of Cincinnati
# 232 - University of Kentucky
# 260 - Xavier University
# 338 - University of Louisville

There are no figures available, but it would not surprize me at all if there are nearly as many UD alumni living in the Cincinnati metro area as there are Xavier alumni, and you can be assured that the Dayton alumni in Cincinnati haven’t changed their college basketball loyalty (with the obvious exception of Chris Mack’s wife – a UD alumna). The many thousands of Dayton Flyers fans living in the Cincinnati metro area certainly add to Cincinnati’s metro area population and TV Market size, but they have little or no interest in Xavier or UC Bearcats basketball. They are still loyal members of the Flyer Faithful and they still watch Dayton’s games on their TV’s in the Cincinnati College Basketball TV Market, which is dominated by the UC Bearcats.
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Previously posted:

Xudash wrote:
augkash wrote:
Lol @ all the hate from XU fans. And most people know about Dayton and its basketball program.

When it is all said and done, your biggest problem is that you are too close in proximity to a current Big East program. That program happens to be Xavier.

You guys haven't proven that you have a clue about putting together a sustainable basketball program that actually wins where it matters. This is not the time to bring up Archie Miller, because he is not going to stay at UD much longer. If anyone knows about career aspirations when it comes to a member of the Miller family, it would be a Xavier fan.

It simply does not make sense to have another program in Southwest Ohio, given the television metrics that exist for that region.

Finally, most people don't know about UD. That is a ridiculous position to take.

Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
Dayton has more than 1½ times as many students as Xavier, and has more than 1½ times the number of alumni Xavier has. The vast majority of the University of Dayton alumni live outside of the Dayton metro area, and just 48 percent of UD’s students hail from Ohio. Most UD alumni are serious basketball fans - including me. We travel to Madison Square Gardens, Barclay Center, Chicago, Los Angeles, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Orlando, (and anywhere else you can name) in our thousands - and in much greater numbers than our opponents' fans. And we’re not just coming from Dayton:

University of Dayton Alumni Chapters

Atlanta • Austin • Boston • Charlotte • Chicago • Cincinnati • Cleveland • Columbus • Dallas / Ft. Worth • Dayton • Denver • Detroit • Houston • Indianapolis • Los Angeles • Louisville • Miami • Milwaukee • Nashville • New York / New Jersey • Northwest Ohio • Orange County, CA • Philadelphia • Phoenix • Pittsburgh • Puerto Rico • Raleigh / Durham • Rochester • San Diego • San Francisco • Seattle • St. Louis • Tampa Bay • Washington DC / Baltimore • Western Michigan

In 2015-16, all 33 of Dayton's home and away games were televised, most of which were on major TV networks. All of these games were watched by tens of thousands of Dayton Flyers fans scattered all over the country.

It is safe to assume that the number-crunchers and senior executives at Fox Sports are aware of all of the above.

Bill Marsh wrote:
Bulldog_Muskie wrote:
I always had the perception that Dayton had a large commuter population and that they were a relatively concentrated fan base, never really cared to investigate though!

Like a lot of Catholic colleges, this once was the case, but currently almost half of Dayton's enrolment is out-of-state students. And even with in-state students, we're talking about many who come from other parts of Ohio, not just the Southwest corner of the state. Dayton is the largest private university in the state and it's been around for a long time, so they have a lot of alumni around the state and elsewhere around the Midwest, I don't know what their reach is for TV ratings, but I'm sure that it's more than the greater Dayton area or even just the Cincinnati-Dayton corner of Ohio.

Bill Marsh wrote:
Any state university represents the entire state, so that state is their market.

Although the Big East schools were founded to serve local needs, their current student bodies are mostly regional and in some cases national. They are no longer commuter schools.

When discussions about Dayton focus on them duplicating Xavier in the Southwest Ohio market, I have to wonder why some assume that Dayton alums and other fans throughout Ohio and other parts of the Midwest are not tuning into games just because they don't live in Dayton.

Obviously attendance is primarily based on local interest, but TV ratings can be drawn from anywhere.

Bill Marsh is a very wise man.

Xudash wrote:
Dayton's record with respect to naming head coaches is abysmal. There is no other way to look at it.

Yes there is. On July 11, 2017 I addressed this issue in detail with this post on The Dayton thread...

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:53 am**

6. Exposing the Great Hypocrisy.

Conference Realignment Thread v. 2013 – 1506 posts dated December 4, 2013 to April 23, 2014

Conference Realignment Thread v. 2014 – 325 posts dated November 17, 2014 to March 30, 2015

Conference Realignment Thread v. 2015 – 1703 posts dated April 2, 2015 to March 21, 2016

Conference Realignment Thread v. 2016 – 1109 posts dated March 25, 2016 to January 3, 2017

Conference Realignment Thread v. 2017 - 461 posts dated January 1 to June 22, 2017

UConn to the Big East? Rumors and Discussion Thread - 214 posts dated February 15 to March 12, 2017

Article on what's wrong with UConn recruiting - 58 posts dated June 6 to June 13, 2017

In the threads above, xudash has persistently advocated for the permanent exclusion of Dayton from the Big East due to its close proximity to Xavier, while simultaneously advocating for the addition of Connecticut to the Big East.

Dayton-to-Cincinnati is 56 miles.

Storrs, CT-to-Providence is 51 miles.

The obvious explanation for The Great Hypocrisy is that Storrs, CT-to-Cincinnati is 800 miles.

Xudash wrote:
Finally, most people don't know about UD.

They do now.

Posted: **Thu Sep 07, 2017 7:54 am**

7. Final Remarks.

7.1 The modern history of college basketball began in the 1986-87 season, when the 3-point shot and the 45-second shot clock simultaneously debuted.

7.2 Xavier is to be congratulated for the greatest come-back by a Catholic school in the modern history of college basketball. In the first post on this thread, I flagged Xavier’s 3-23 record in 1973 not to embarrass Xavier, but rather, to show the starting point and magnitude of that amazing come-back. From 1986-87 to the present day, the Musketeers have been on a roll. While Villanova and Gonzaga have reached greater heights than Xavier, Villanova’s worst season ever was 10-15 in 1956–57, and Gonzaga’s worst season ever was 2-9 in 1942-43 – neither of which would qualify as a "come-back".

7.3 As impressive as Xavier’s last 30 seasons have been, Xavier’s fans should appreciate that 30 years is only 25% of college basketball history, and other teams have been on top for longer in years gone by. For example, St. John’s appeared on the ESPN/Sagarin Top 40 Programs of Each Decade lists for 6 consecutive decades - the 1940's through the 1990's.

7.4 The modern era of college basketball (1986-87 to present) as we know it would not exist without the previous 90 years of college basketball history. Both the rules of the game and the popularity of college basketball have changed greatly over the past 120 years. A knowledge and appreciation of the history of college basketball is essential for serious college basketball fans. Would the lore of professional baseball be the same without the Cincinnati Red Stockings, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Willie Mays, and Hank Aaron? No - it wouldn't. History is permanent and unchangeable.

7.5 During the 20-season UD Fieldhouse era (1950-1969), the Dayton Flyers averaged a # 7 national ranking for 20 consecutive years - a feat that no other Catholic university has ever accomplished.

7.6 As each month passes, those of us who grew up with President Eisenhower in the White House and Tom Blackburn coaching the Flyers become fewer in number. This was my motivation for creating this thread, and for the time spent in research for it. The Big East will still be here 20 years from now, and hopefully, the HLOH message board will too, but I certainly won’t be, so I decided to post this History of the Former Dayton-Xavier Rivalry for posterity. It may become relevant some day…

7.7 Therefore, I respectfully request that the Moderators do not delete this thread or any of the posts above, as Xavier is a permanent member of the Big East, and some day in the distant future, Dayton may be as well. Please consider this thread to be a historical record for the HLOH archives, worth preserving on the Off Topic board.

7.8 Bearing in mind that this is a Historical Information thread, I invite other posters to add to it with anecdotes and/or additional historical information relating to things which have already happened. Posts relating to things which have not yet happened (such as Big East expansion, or reasons why Dayton should continue to be excluded from the Big East) should be posted on the existing Conference Realignment Thread v. 2017.

7.9 And finally, I have deliberately avoided mentioning any of the unpleasant incidents that have occurred during the course of the Former Dayton-Xavier Rivalry, as no good would come from it. I respectfully request other posters to do the same.

Posted: **Sun Sep 09, 2018 10:49 am**

On September 7, 2017 Fieldhouse Flyer wrote:
Below is a listing of the notable head coaches for Dayton and Xavier, along with their career win totals for their respective schools:

Dayton Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)

Tom Blackburn (1948–1964) • 352–141 (.714)

Don Donoher (1964-1989) • 437–275 (.614)

Jim O'Brien (1989–1994) • 61–87 (.412) • 27–37 (.422)

Oliver Purnell (1994-2003) • 155–116 (.572) • 72–68 (.514)

Brian Gregory (2003-2011) • 172–94 (.647) • 70–58 (.547)

Archie Miller (2011-2017) • 139–63 (.688) • 68–34 (.667)

Anthony Grant (2017- ?) • 0-0 • 0-0

Xavier Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)

James McCafferty (1957–1963) • 91–71 (.562)

[five coaches] (1963-1985) • 259-332 (.438) • 35–35 (.500)

Pete Gillen (1985–1994) • 202–75 (.729) • 83–25 (.769)

Skip Prosser (1995–2001) • 148–65 (.695) • 81–27 (.750)

Thad Matta (2001–2004) • 78–23 (.772) • 39–9 (.813)

Sean Miller (2004–2009) • 120–47 (.719) • 57–23 (.713)

Chris Mack (2009-2017) • 187–91 (.673) • 90–46 (.662)

During the 2017-18 season, Chris Mack will get his 16th win of the season, which will also be his 203rd career win - surpassing Pete Gillen as Xavier’s winningest head coach.

It’s time to close the book on Chris Mack and welcome Travis Steele as Xavier's new coach:

Dayton Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)

Tom Blackburn (1948–1964) • 352–141 (.714)

Don Donoher (1964-1989) • 437–275 (.614)

Jim O'Brien (1989–1994) • 61–87 (.412) • 27–37 (.422)

Oliver Purnell (1994-2003) • 155–116 (.572) • 72–68 (.514)

Brian Gregory (2003-2011) • 172–94 (.647) • 70–58 (.547)

Archie Miller (2011-2017) • 139–63 (.688) • 68–34 (.667)

Anthony Grant (2017- ?) • 14–17 (.452) • 8–10 (.444)

Xavier Coach (Seasons) • Overall W-L (Pct.) • Conference W-L (Pct.)

James McCafferty (1957–1963) • 91–71 (.562)

[five coaches] (1963-1985) • 259-332 (.438) • 35–35 (.500)

Pete Gillen (1985–1994) • 202–75 (.729) • 83–25 (.769)

Skip Prosser (1995–2001) • 148–65 (.695) • 81–27 (.750)

Thad Matta (2001–2004) • 78–23 (.772) • 39–9 (.813)

Sean Miller (2004–2009) • 120–47 (.719) • 57–23 (.713)

Chris Mack (2009-2018) • 215-97 (.689) • 105–49 (.682)

Travis Steele (2018- ?) • 0-0 • 0-0

Posted: **Thu Sep 13, 2018 12:08 pm**

Just an observation: You've responded to your own post about an XU-Dayton rivalry about 8 times without a single response from anyone else. Might be time to let this thread die.

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