LAHAINA, Maui – Redshirt junior Malachi Smith had a career showing, but the University of Dayton men's basketball team fell in another tight contest at the Maui Invitational on Tuesday night, coming up short 89-84 to No. 5-ranked Iowa State at the Lahaina Civic Center.
 
Smith finished the night with a career-high 22 points and dished out nine assists, leading four Flyers with double-digit points. Senior Enoch Cheeks (16), redshirt senior Zed Key (15), and senior Nate Santos (12) all joined Smith in double figures.
 
The final five minutes of play featured four ties and four lead changes, with the Flyers holding the Cyclones to just one field goal over the final four minutes of action. Unfortunately for UD, ISU went to the free-throw line 10 time and connected on all 10.
 
GAME BREAKDOWN
1st Half: Dayton 41, Iowa State 37
• Dayton finished the half making six of its last six shots from the floor.
• Senior Nate Santos and redshirt junior Malachi Smith led the Flyers with 10 points apiece at the break.
• A pair of free throws from freshman Hamad Mousa after a block from Zed Key gave Dayton a nine-point advantage.
• Santos responded to a Cyclone three-ball with his second of the day to push the Flyers back up by nine.
• UD rode a 17-8 run over 5:37 to build its biggest lead of the half at 39-30.
• Iowa State closed the half on a 7-2 run to cut Dayton's lead to four.

2nd Half: Iowa State 89, Dayton 84
• Iowa State started the second half connecting on seven of eight shots from the floor over 7:19 of action.
• In that timeframe, the Cyclones went on a 22-11 run to build its biggest lead of the game of nine.
• UD chips away at the deficit, getting back-to-back buckets from Enoch Cheeks to pull within four at 9:50 to go.
• The two teams traded punches with ISU maintaining a lead until Enoch Cheeks drained a three at 5:02 to give Dayton its first lead since the 16:28 mark of the half.
• A quick 4-0 run from Iowa State put the Cyclones back in control.
• After a Zed Key dunk brought the Flyers back within two, Malachi Smith put UD back in front with a layup at 3:33
• Iowa State went with just one field goal over the final four minutes, but went perfect from the charity stripe.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
• Dayton committed 11 turnovers in the contest, the fewest against Iowa State's defense this season.
• Malachi Smith's 22 came on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor, including 2-for-3 from beyond the arc.
• Enoch Cheeks tied a season-high in threes, connecting on three for the night.
• UD shot a season-high 58 percent from the floor in the game, narrowly out-pacing ISU who shot 52 percent.
• The Flyers also held the advantage in three-point shooting, connecting on 39 percent from downtown compared to the Cyclones' 23 percent.
• Once again, Dayton saw its opponent hold the advantage from the charity stripe, as Iowa State shot 86 percent (25-of-29) compared to the Flyers' 73 percent (19-of-26).
• ISU was led by Keshon Gilbert and Curtis Jones, who scored 24 and 19 points, respectively.
• Enoch Cheeks once again led the Flyers in rebounding, hauling in six to go along with his 16 points.
 
UP NEXT
• Dayton finishes the 2024 Maui Invitational with a matchup against reigning National Champion and current No. 2-ranked UConn on Wednesday, Nov. 27 at midnight ET at the Lahaina Civic Center.