Fri, Mar 11, 2022

Flyers Capitalize In Final Minutes. DaRon Holmes II Scores Career-High 28

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The University of Dayton men’s basketball team defeated UMass in the A-10 Quarterfinals 75-72.  After trailing by as much as 10, the Flyers fought back for a three-point win.  Dayton advances to the A-10 semifinals, and will play the winner of the Richmond-VCU game Saturday.  Dayton improves to 23-9, while UMass falls to 15-17.

The Flyers were led by freshman DaRon Holmes II who notched a career-high 28 points.  Holmes was joined in double digits by freshman Malachi Smith who had 15, sophomore Toumani Camara with 12, and redshirt freshman R.J. Blakney with 10.

GAME BREAKDOWN

1st Half: UMass 36, Dayton 34

·         The Flyers opened the game up 8-4 after three minutes of play as Dayton converted on three of five from the field to start.

·         A 10-0 run from UMass put the Minutemen up 16-9 with 13:07 left.

·         DaRon Holmes II responded scoring four straight for Dayton to reduce the deficit to four.

·         The UMass lead grew to seven at 21-13 as Dayton shot 36% from the field over the first 10 minutes.

·         The Minutemen continued to lead by six with eight minutes remaining in the half.

·         A three by UMass extended the lead to 10 at 36-26 with 2:24 left.

·         An 8-0 run over a 1:38 stretch by Dayton cut the deficit to two with 45 seconds left.  Malachi Smith had six of the Flyers eight during the run.

·         UMass was held scoreless for the final 2:27 of the half.

·         Holmes II led the Flyers with 16 points off 6-8 shooting and three rebounds.

2nd Half: Dayton 75, UMass 72

·         Dayton took the lead four minutes into the half off a layup from Kobe Elvis.

·         UMass responded by taking a 48-43 lead as Dayton was held scoreless for a three-minute stretch.

·         An R.J. Blakney three tied the game again at 50 all with 11 minutes to play.

·         Three straight points from Toumani Camara tied the game at 57 all with eight left in the contest.

·         A layup by Koby Brea and free throws by Blakney capped off a 7-0 run and put the Flyers up 61-57 with 6:59 remaining.

·         Dayton continued to lead by two with 3:26 left, the Flyers made six straight from the field over the three minutes stretch.

·         Five straight points from UMass put Dayton behind three with two minutes left.

·         A Holmes layup gave Dayton its first FG in three minutes to give Dayton a 69-68 lead with 0:51 left.

·         Following a UMass miss, two made free throws from Smith game Dayton a three-point lead with 26 seconds remaining.

·         After a UMass bucket, made free throws by Brea, Camara and Smith iced the Dayton win.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

·         Four Flyers hit double-digits, DaRon Holmes II (28), Malachi Smith (15), Toumani Camara (12), and R.J. Blakney (10).

·         Dayton shot 52% from the field, while UMass shot 45%.

·         The Flyers totaled 32 rebounds, with Camara leading the way with seven.  Smith, Holmes II, and Amzil each had five.

·         Dayton out assisted the Minutemen 14-9, as Smith led the way with six.

·         UD won despite leading for only 7:11 in a game with nine separate lead changes.

·         With his 28 points, Holmes II registered the highest scoring game a Flyer has had this season.

·         Holmes II also scored his 28 points off just 15 field goal attempts, shooting 80% from the field.

UP NEXT

·         Dayton will play in the A-10 semifinals Saturday against the winner of the winner of the Richmond-VCU game.

·         The game will tip at 3:30 p.m. ET and will air on CBS Sports.

COURTESY DAYTON MEDIA RELATIONS