Saint Louis vs Dayton: 2020-21 college basketball game preview, TV schedule

Game time: Tuesday, January 26, 8:00 p.m. ET

TV schedule: CBS Sports Network

Location: Chaifetz Arena, Saint Louis, Missouri

Cue the “It’s been 84 years…” Titanic meme. Despite the fact that every other A-10 has played at least five games, the Saint Louis Billikens will play their first on Tuesday night against the Dayton Flyers. The Billikens haven’t played a game at all since December 23rd and they’ve been on a COVID-19 pause since December 30th.

The virus hit SLU hard, with 80% of their personnel being affected. Thankfully, everyone is doing okay, and they’ll be able to resume what has been an exceptional season so far. And they’ll get an opponent in Dayton that they’ve developed a pretty solid rivalry within recent years. Here’s what to expect.

Despite the Saint Louis lay off, they’re still checking in at 25 in the AP poll coming into Tuesday. The Billikens are 7-1 on the season with signature wins against both NC State and LSU. Their only loss came on the road against a tough Minnesota squad, and they’re looking like the only sure at-large bid from the Atlantic 10 right now. If they can shake off their bout with COVID, they’re well on their way to their second NCAA berth in as many tournaments.

If there’s one thing to note about Saint Louis, it’s that they’re not short on offensive weapons. The Billikens are led by A-10 Player of the Year favorite Javonte Perkins and his 17.8 points per game. The 6’6″ wing is shooting it at 53.6 percent from the field and an insane — insane — 54.8 percent from three. Fellow senior Jordan Goodwin checks in with 16.9 points and… yeah, the insane stats continue. The 6’3″ guard is averaging 11.1 rebounds per game. Yikes. Redshirt freshman Gibson Jimerson rounds out the double-figure scorers with 11.3 points per game. It’s safe to say SLU will throw a lot of things at whichever team they play.

So how can Dayton stop them? Can Dayton stop them? The Flyers have been a bit of an enigma this year, carrying an 8-4 (4-3) record into Tuesday. They hold wins over Mississippi, Mississippi State, and Davidson, but they’ve also lost to both La Salle and Fordham. They’re also coming off a 66-43 drubbing at the hands of VCU on Saturday, so at the very least they’ll be plenty motivated to try and grab a ‘W’.

UD is led by senior guard Jalen Crutcher and his 19.5 points per game. The Flyers have needed him to step in and be ‘the guy’ this season following the loss of Obi Toppin, and his scoring average has certainly matched that need. Ibi Watson, another senior guard, is averaging 15.9 points per game, while newcomer Mustapha Amzil has tallied 13.3 points per game despite joining the team six games into the season. They’ve needed his scoring, especially since losing Chase Johnson (12.2 points per game) for personal reasons and Rodney Chatman (10.0 points per game) to injury.

Before the season started, these two teams were considered to be pretty similar. Heck, they both got first-place votes in the preseason poll. But they’re headed in different directions; SLU is much better than most people thought, while Dayton is fading towards the middle of the pack in the A-10. If the Billikens can pick up where they left off, they should have no problems winning this one by double digits.

Prediction: Saint Louis 75 – Dayton 61