Redbirds schedule series with Dayton for 2012-13

[June 05, 2012]  NORMAL -- Illinois State head basketball coach Dan Muller has made public his desire to improve the Redbirds' strength of schedule, and that was evident with his announcement Monday of a home-and-home series with Dayton, beginning in the 2012-13 season.

The home-and-home series will begin in Dayton on Dec. 19, 2012. The Flyers will return to Doug Collins Court in Redbird Arena on Dec. 7, 2013.

"I'm very excited to add the Dayton home-and-home series to our schedule," Muller said. "Dayton is a program with a great history, as one of the better programs in the Midwest, and Archie Miller is a very good coach. In addition, this is a game that our fans can travel to, and we are looking forward to hosting them in 2013."

The Redbirds and the Flyers have met five times in the history of the two programs, with Dayton leading the series 4-1. The last two meetings have come in the National Invitation Tournament, with Dayton ending Illinois State's seasons in both 2008 and 2010.

Dayton finished tied for fifth in the Atlantic-10 Conference last season and posted an overall mark of 20-13 while earning an NIT berth. The Flyers fell 84-75 in the first round at Iowa.

[Text from news release received from Todd Kober, associate athletics director, athletics communications, Illinois State University]