Benson shakes off rust to shine for UD in exhibition

Dunbar grad makes dazzling debut with two crowd-pleasing dunks in preseason romp.

The University of Dayton’s Kurt Huelsman pulls a rebound away from Ferris State’s Josh Young on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Huelsman had 15 points and six rebounds as the Flyers won 88-73.

Contributed photo by Erik Schelkun The University of Dayton’s Kurt Huelsman pulls a rebound away from Ferris State’s Josh Young on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Huelsman had 15 points and six rebounds as the Flyers won 88-73.

ENLARGE PHOTO

By Doug Harris, Staff Writer Updated 10:42 AM Wednesday, November 4, 2009

DAYTON — After finishing back-to-back possessions with soaring dunks — the second on an ally-oop from Mickey Perry — redshirt freshman Josh Benson turned to the crowd with outstretched palms as if to say, “How do you like me so far?”

The 6-foot-9 Dunbar graduate, who sat out last season with a dislocated shoulder, performed some crowd-pleasing maneuvers in his first action before University of Dayton fans — and he wasn’t the only one.

Perry had 16 points and five assists and Kurt Huelsman 15 points and six rebounds in an 88-73 exhibition win over Ferris State on Tuesday, while Chris Johnson added 14 points and nine rebounds, Luke Fabrizius notched 14 points and Paul Williams scored 11.

Benson tallied eight points and five rebounds in 16 minutes.

“It was an adrenaline rush,” Benson said of those first-half plays. “That got me going. At first, I was in a little shell, a little nervous. But after those dunks, I played my game.

“It’s been two years, a very long time. It was a good experience to be back with my teammates.”

But like most UD players, Benson also had some forgettable moments — like the time he got stuffed on a jumper by a Ferris State guard.

Playing without Chris Wright (ankle) and Marcus Johnson (ribs), who were sidelined with minor injuries, UD shot 57.6 percent from the field but had an untidy 23 turnovers.

The Flyers led by 18 early in the second half but let the Division-II Bulldogs creep to within 10 with 4:36 to go before finally pulling away.

UD sold 11,166 tickets to the game, about three-fourths of which were used.

“We played well in stretches, but that’s not at all where we need to be,” UD coach Brian Gregory said.

“Our young guys will have better days than they had today. That’s why they give you four years to play.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2125 or at dharris@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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