The Dayton Flyers were the Cinderella story of the tournament, starting the 2014 NCAA Tournament with, well, a bang when it bounced our beloved Buckeyes in the first game in the field of 64. After having much fun with that upset at the expense of Ohio State basketball fans, it defeated Syracuse to advance to regionals and beat Stanford to get a chance at going to the Final Four.
Like Ohio State fans, Dayton fans can now experience the honor of being outclassed by Florida in the NCAA Tournament. Dayton lost 62-52.
Though a 10-point defeat to this author's pick to win the NCAA Tournament suggests a close game, the Flyers were effectively done when Florida went on a 19-3 run to end the first half. Barring a meltdown not seen from the 36-2 Gators all season, Dayton was going to lose.
That said, we congratulate the Dayton Flyers for a great run in the NCAA Tournament. Though the first game will be a knot in the Ohio State fan's stomach for a while, we can take some pride in seeing another Ohio school, also coached by another Thad Matta protégé, do well in March.
