Clarke scores 21, Butler tops Dayton at A-10

NEW YORK (AP) -- Rotnei Clarke scored 21 points, and Butler advanced at the Atlantic 10 tournament with a 73-67 first-round victory over Dayton on Thursday. The fifth-seeded Bulldogs will need to win four games in four days if they want a conference tourney title in their first -- and perhaps last -- season in the A-10. Clarke shot 6 of 12 from behind the 3-point arc and added five assists. Fellow senior Andrew Smith had 18 points and six rebounds. Butler was 10 for 24 on 3-point tries, while the Flyers attempted just four. Josh Benson had 18 points to lead 12th-seeeded Dayton (17-14, 7-9). The Bulldogs (25-7, 11-5) will face fourth-seeded La Salle in Friday's quarterfinals. Butler, the national runner-up in 2010 and '11, could be headed along with Dayton to join the breakaway Big East basketball schools.