Spiders make foul shots; win against Dayton 73-64

University of Richmond went 32-35 from the foul line as it came back in the second half to beat University of Dayton, 73-64, at the Robins Center.

Richmond had shot 63.8 percent from the foul line coming into the game, which ranked the Spiders last in the Atlantic 10. Richmond head coach Chris Mooney said the players had been working really hard on their free-throw shooting.

"We talked about... just forgetting what your percentage is, what you were the last time." Mooney said. "Free throws should always be the easiest shot. They're not always the easiest shot, depending on the guy."

Kendall Anthony led the Spiders in scoring with 18 points. Cedrick Lindsay scored 17 points, despite not making a field goal until midway through the second half. Anthony and Lindsay combined to shoot 6-24 from the field.

Anthony and Lindsay combined to shoot 22-25 from the line. The two guards' aggressiveness on offense led to them shooting a high amount of foul shots, Mooney said.

"At the beginning of the game, you can kind of tell the way the game was being called, that the game would come down to free throws," Lindsay said. "We were able to put them in tonight."

"I thought our aggression at both ends helped us get to the free throw line where we made some," Mooney said. "I think it helped us defensively, where even though they shot a high percentage, I thought we got some critical turnovers."

Dyshawn Pierre's 19 points led Dayton, which has wins over Gonzaga and California, in scoring.

Richmond trailed by four at the half, despite shooting 30 percent from the field. Dayton, which led by as many as eight, led for most of the first half.

"We got some good looks. We just couldn't put them in," Lindsay said. "You're not going to come out and make every shot every night. We knew we had to pick it up on defense, and that's what we did."

Richmond eventually tied the game at 43--the first tie since the teams were tied at seven. Dayton, which faced serious foul trouble throughout the second half, regained the lead, but Lindsay's first made field goal and a ShawnDre Jones 3-pointer put the Spiders up, 54-50, with less than 10 minutes remaining.

With Richmond up 65-63 with less than three minutes to play, Alonzo Nelson-Ododa brought the fans to their feet with a monster block. Trey Davis, who had six points and seven rebounds, made a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession, which increased the Spiders' lead to 67-63.

Richmond continued making its foul shots at the end to seal the victory.

Mooney said Dayton had been one of the best teams Richmond has played, but Richmond will be put to the test again Wednesday when it hosts No. 16 Massachusetts.

Contact staff writer Jack Nicholson at Jack.Nicholson@richmond.edu