VCU AT DAYTON: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TODAY’S A-10 SHOWDOWN
Virginia Commonwealth (18-6, 9-2) at Dayton (16-8, 8-3) 4 p.m., today Where: UD Arena
NBC Sports Network/AM 1290 and News 95.7 WHIO ■ Josh Cunningham, 6-8, R-Sr., 14.1
■ Obi Toppin, 6-9, R-Fr., F, 13.6
■ Jalen Crutcher, 6-1, So., G, 13.3
■ Jordan Davis, 6-2, So., G, 10.2
■ Ryan Mikesell, 6-7, R-Jr., F, 9.1 ■ Marcus Evans, 6-2, R-Jr., G, 13.5
■ De’Riante Jenkins, 6-5, Jr., G, 11.3
■ Isaac Vann, 6-6, R-Jr., F, 11.0
■ Marcus Santos-Silva, 6-7, So., F, 9.5
■ Sean Mobley, 6-8, So., F, 4.5
VCU leads 10-5 and 7-4 since entering the A-10 in 2012-13 season. The Rams have won three straight in the series and beat Dayton 76-71 on Jan. 16 in Richmond. Coaches: Anthony Grant is 30-25 in his second season at Dayton. Mike Rhoades is 36-21 in his second season at VCU.
Dayton won 77-48 at Rhode Island on Feb. 9. VCU won 81-60 at home against Richmond on Wednesday.
Dayton has a 54 percent chance of winning, according to KenPom.com, which predicts a 65-64 score . ... Toppin is four dunks from tying Chris Wright’s singleseason school record of 66 in a season. He’s tied for third most dunks in college basketball behind Arkansas’ Daniel Gafford (71) and Texas’ Jaxon Hayes (65). He’s shooting 68.6 percent from the field, which ranks second in the country behind Gonzaga’s Brandon Clarke (68.8) . ... Dwayne Cohill has shot 7 of 7 from the field in the last three games, scoring 17 points . ... Dayton needs one more victory to guarantee a winning season. Its streak of 11 straight winning seasons ended last season.
The Rams rank 46th in the Pomeroy ratings and 44th in the NCAA Evaluation Tool. Dayton ranks 65th and 82nd, respectively . ... VCU leads the Atlantic 10 in scoring defense (62.6 points per game). Dayton leads the conference in scoring offense (74.0) . ... VCU shoots 29.9 percent from 3-point range, ranking 335th in the nation. Evans is the top threat from long range (44 of 137, 32.1) . ... VCU has won three straight A-10 road games against Duquesne, George Washington and St. Bonaventure since losing 71-65 at Rhode Island on Jan. 23. Davidson handed VCU its other A-10 loss: 6457 on Jan. 12.
Dayton plays at Davidson at 6 p.m. Tuesday. TV: CBS Sports Network.