By Malcolm Price

2 15 2025

Malachi Smith’s Free Throw With Six Seconds Left Proves To Be The Difference

DAYTON – It all came down to the wire but the University of Dayton men’s basketball team won a tough nail-biting battle over Duquesne 77-76 on Saturday in front of an electric crowd at UD Arena.

Dayton battled back from as many as 12 points down to take a five-point lead with 20 seconds to go.  But Duquesne scored five unanswered to tie the game 12 seconds later.  Malachi Smith was fouled with six seconds to go and made the second of his two free throws.  Dukes guard Tre Dinkins was able to create some space and get off a three-pointer at the buzzer but it rimmed out to earn UD its fourth win in five games.

Enoch Cheeks led the Flyers with 19 points and Zed Key with 18 big points off the bench in just 19 minutes. Malachi Smith also contributed 12 points that helped secure the victory.

Dayton improves to 18-8 overall (8-5 in A-10 play) and the Dukes fell to 10-15 overall (5-7 in A-10 play).

First Half – Duquesne 44, Dayton 40

• After a couple of buckets from the Dukes, redshirt junior Malachi Smith got the Flyers on the board with a transition lay-in off a steal from senior Enoch Cheeks.
• Following a Duquesne three, Smith responded with one of his own as the Flyers trailed 7-5 at the 17-minute mark.
• Junior Isaac Jack entered into the contest and immediately made an impact as he earned his first points through a highly contested finish at the rim.
• Cheeks showcased his skills by driving through the paint, sinking back-to-back fade away jumpers that cut the Dukes’ lead to 13-11 at the 14:58 mark.
• Cheeks continued his hot streak, making his third straight field goal and scoring the last seven points for the Flyers.
• Redshirt senior Posh Alexander entered the contest following the media timeout, drew a foul, and converted both free throw attempts.
• At the 11:50 mark, freshman Hamad Mousa finished strong at the rim, cutting the deficit to just one, 19-18.
• Graduate student Zed Key threw down a powerful dunk off a gorgeous lob pass from Alexander at the 11:19 mark.
• Junior Javon Bennett got his first points of the game with a strong drive, finishing with a high-arcing lefty teardrop at the 9:52 mark.
• After a few minutes of scoring drought, junior Jacob Conner knocked down back-to-back buckets, including a three-point dagger to cut into the Dukes’ lead, 35-28, at the 5:14 mark.
• After getting a steal, senior Nate Santos secured the ball and converted an and-one at the 3:44 mark.
• The Flyers maintained their full-court pressure, forcing a turnover that led to Cheeks earning three free throws.
• As time wound down, Key grabbed the offensive rebound and threw down his second dunk of the half to cut Duquesne’s lead to 44-40.

Second Half – Dayton 77, Duquesne 76

• Bennett set the tone early with a strong finish in the lane, trimming the deficit to two.
• In transition, Smith connected with Cheeks for an alley-oop layup at the 17:48 mark.
• Bennett forced a crucial turnover, setting up Jack for a thunderous dunk that ignited the crowd and gave Dayton its first lead, 47-46.
• The Flyers’ defense held the Dukes scoreless for 2:31, forcing three turnovers during the stretch and taking a 48-46 lead.
• Key secured an offensive rebound at the 15:22 mark and converted an and-one, extending Dayton’s lead to 51-47.
• After a four-minute scoring drought, Jack ended the skid with a powerful dunk off a brilliant feed from Smith, putting the Flyers back ahead 53-52 at the 11:26 mark.
• As the shot clock expired, Smith drained a tough mid-range jumper, reclaiming the lead for Dayton, 54-53, at the 10:20 mark.
• Despite Duquesne hitting five of six field goals, Key responded with a strong tip-in to cut the deficit to 62-59 at the 7:30 mark.
• Key came through again with a clutch bucket and converted the and-one at 6:51.
• Cheeks grabbed a rebound, pushed the tempo coast to coast, and finished the layup to tie the game at 65 with 5:41 remaining.
• Key continued his dominant play with a dunk off an alley-oop pass from Smith at the 3:24 mark, bringing the Flyers within one, 69-68.
• Smith drove hard to the rim and put Dayton back in front, 70-69, at the 2:37 mark.
• Bennett extended the lead to 72-69 with a smooth pull-up jumper at the 1:42 mark.
• Smith showcased his poise under pressure, drawing a foul and sinking two critical free throws to give the Flyers their largest lead, 74-69, with 52 seconds left.
• Key made a game-changing defensive play with a steal, then knocked down two clutch free throws with 20 seconds remaining.
• The Dukes rallied to tie the game, but Smith drew a foul and sank a decisive free throw, sealing Dayton’s thrilling 77-76 victory.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• 11 – Total number of Flyers who played today.
• 33 – The Flyers got 33 points from the bench.
• 19 – Enoch Cheeks led the Flyers with 19 points
• 18 – Zed Key had a season-high 18 points off the bench
• 5 – Five of Key’s team-high six rebounds came off the offensive glass
• 3 – Cheeks and Javon Bennett each came up with three steals to lead UD
• 11 – Total number of steals for the Flyers compared to the Dukes six
• 23 – Points off turnovers while Duquesne only had six.
• 3 – The Flyers made a season-low three three-point field goals compared to the Dukes’ 10

UP NEXT

• UD will travel to the Windy City to face off against Loyola Chicago at Gentile Arena on Friday, February 21st
• Tipoff is at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2

COURTESY DAYTON MEDIA RELATIONS