Dayton dominates final minutes against Fordham for 17-point road victory

Here’s a quick recap of the game:

What it means: Dayton (17-8, 7-5) bounced back from a 73-68 loss to Virginia Commonwealth on Friday at UD Arena. Dayton moved into a tie for third place with Saint Louis (14-11, 7-5), which lost 76-74 in overtime Tuesday at home against George Mason, with six games left in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Dayton improved to 37-6 in the series against Fordham. The Flyers have won five straight games against Fordham since a 55-54 loss at Rose Hill Gym in 2021. Prior to that loss, Dayton had won 16 straight games in the series since a loss at Fordham in 2006.

Fordham (11-13, 3-8) remains in 14th place, a half game ahead of last-place Richmond (8-17, 3-9).

Star of the game: Malachi Smith led Dayton with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting. He also had five assists, three steals and no turnovers. He played his first game as a Flyer in his hometown.

Stat of the game: Dayton shot 50% (11 of 22) from 3-point range. It was the fourth time this season Dayton has shot 50% or better. Fordham shot 40.9% (9 of 22).

Turning point: The game was tied at 48-48 at halftime and 55-55 four minutes into the second half. Dayton took the lead on a layup by Smith with 15 minutes, 52 seconds to play and didn’t trail again.

The Flyers took control later in the half with a 7-0 run, turning a 63-60 lead at the 12:53 mark into a 70-60 lead at the 9:48 mark. Posh Alexander, Dayton’s other Bronx native, capped the run with a 3-pointer. He had eight points on 3-of-6 shooting.

Looking ahead: Dayton plays Duquesne (10-14, 5-6) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday. Dayton won the first matchup 82-62 at Duquesne on Jan. 21.

HALFTIME RECAP

Fordham overcame an early nine-point deficit and led Dayton by as many as four points in the first half, but the teams entered halftime tied at 48-48.

Here’s a quick recap of the first half:

Key players: Jackie Johnson III led Fordham with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting. He made 4 of 6 3-pointers.

Amaël L’Etang scored 11 points for Dayton on 3-of-3 shooting. He made 4 of 4 free throws.

Key stat: Fordham shot 61.5% (16 of 26) from the field. Dayton shot 50% (13 of 26).

Turning point: Dayton led 19-0 seven minutes into the game. The Flyers stayed on top until the 6:22 mark when Fordham tied the game at 30-30.

Fordham took a 45-41 lead into the final two minutes. Dayton tied the game on a 3-pointer by Javon Bennett and a free-throw by Smith. Bennett hit another 3-pointer with 41 seconds to play to give Dayton a one-point lead. Then Matt Zona tied the game by making 1 of 2 free throws with 15 seconds to play.

Free-throw parade: Each team committed 13 fouls in the half. Dayton made 16 of 20 free throws. Fordham made 10 of 15.

Rotation news: Smith started in place of Posh Alexander. Brady Uhl saw his first meaningful minutes of the season, outside of the game against Division III Capital in November. Uhl played six-plus minutes in the half.