Hayden Dalton’s versatility proves key for Wyoming

When Wyoming forward Hayden Dalton grabs a defensive rebound, he’s not shy about beginning an all-out sprint down the court.

The 6-foot-8 junior brings the versatility to play the point and run the Cowboys’ offense in transition, which has given the team a lot of flexibility in its big lineups this season.

Dalton and forward Alan Herndon played some point Thursday in the Las Vegas Classic at Orleans Arena, powering Wyoming’s 72-58 victory over DePaul.

“It’s definitely fun to have everyone besides our absolute fives run every position,” Dalton said. “I think it makes it hard for teams to guard us, too, when we have bigger guys running the point and getting into the offense that way.”

Dalton is helping the Cowboys (10-2) finish the nonconference season with a flourish, as the team has won its past seven games.

He led Wyoming with 18 points and 12 rebounds against DePaul, his third straight game with a double-double.

The teams were tied at 29 at halftime, but the Cowboys went on a 17-2 run just over five minutes into the second half to take control.

Wyoming went big early on in the second half, and it helped the team find momentum after playing sloppy early.

“When you play with that lineup, you can do so many things not only offensively, you can do so many things defensively as well,” first-year Wyoming coach Allen Edwards said. “You can switch one through five and not really feel like it’s hurting you. You can space the floor because you have five guys who can dribble, pass and shoot.”

Dalton helps make the lineup work because of all the different things he can do on the court.

He is one of four players averaging more than 10 points for the Cowboys, and was fifth in the Mountain West in rebounds (7.5) before Thursday.

Dalton also leads the team in assists (2.9), has a capable 3-point shot and is one of the team’s better free-throw shooters at 80.8 percent.

“I think the best part of what Hayden’s doing is getting to the free-throw line and putting them in,” Edwards said. “It’s a tremendous asset to what we’re trying to do.”

As one of four juniors in Wyoming’s starting lineup, Dalton also provides leadership. He’s one of the most vocal players in the huddle, and Edwards credits him with providing energy to his teammates.

“He’s an aggressive guy that plays with passion and heart,” Herndon said. “He always gets us going. He’s always in the huddle talking to us, encouraging us.”

Not even a power outage in the Cowboys’ game against Troy on Dec. 19 was enough to slow Dalton. The teams had to stop play for more than two hours, but the forward finished with a team-high 12 rebounds and four assists.

“That was funny last time, you couldn’t see anything. It was a fun game,” Dalton said. “I’m glad we were able to get that win as well as this one.”

Ben Gotz can be reached at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.