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Dayton men’s basketball player Malcolm Thomas, wearing jersey No. 1, elevates for a two-handed dunk in front of a packed crowd at UD Arena. He is fully extended above the rim with the ball in both hands. Three NC Central defenders in maroon jerseys watch from below, while other players and coaches line the court. The scoreboard shows Dayton leading 27–22 with 11:03 left in the first half. Bright arena lights illuminate the action from above.
55
N.C. Central NCCU 2-5,0-0 MEAC
74
Winner Dayton UD 5-1,0-0 Atlantic 10
N.C. Central NCCU
2-5,0-0 MEAC
55
Final
74
Dayton UD
5-1,0-0 Atlantic 10
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
N.C. Central NCCU 20 35 55
Dayton UD 44 30 74

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

#UDMBB Rolls To 74-55 Victory Over NC Central

Four Flyers Finished In Double-Figures In The Win

DAYTON – The University of Dayton men's basketball team rode a dominant defensive performance to its fifth win of the season, rolling by NC Central 74-55 on Saturday afternoon at UD Arena.
 
The Flyers allowed just 20 points in the opening half, the fewest points allowed to an opponent since surrendering just 16 points in the first half against Grambling in the 2023-24 season.


Despite NC Central scoring the first basket of the game, Dayton responded with a 27-7 run over the next 10 minutes to put the game's result in control early. By the time the dust settled at the break, UD led 44-20, and the Flyers would coast to the eventual 19-point victory.

Junior De'Shayne Montgomery led the way with 17 points, while redshirt freshman Malcolm Thomas set a new career-high with 12. Sophomore Amaël L'Etang added 11 points and senior Jacob Conner had 10 to go along with six boards.
 
UD held NC Central to just .373 from the floor for the game, and held the Eagles to 15 points under their scoring average for the season. The Flyers, meanwhile, shot .429 from the field and held an advantage in rebounds (38-36), steals (11-3), forced turnovers (18-7), and assists (13-9).
 
GAME RECAP
First Half – Dayton 44, NC Central 20
  • Sophomore Amaël L'Etang tipped the ball in off a rebound for the Flyers' first basket of the game. 
  • Senior Javon Bennett hit a jumper at 15:29 to give Dayton the lead and they would never look back. 
  • Graduate Student Keonte Jones sank a lay-up off a fast break, bringing the Flyers to seven points. 
  • Senior Jacob Conner sank a second-chance three-pointer to give Dayton a 12-7 lead
  • Junior De'Shayne Montgomery hit a lay-up on the fast break off an Eagle turnover for his first basket of the contest.
  • Redshirt Sophomore Jaiun Simon made a turnaround jumper to bring the Flyers to a 20-9 advantage. 
  • Keonte Jones went up for an effortless dunk to put the Flyers ahead 15. 
  • Montgomery drove in for the lay-up and converted an and one, putting UD ahead 30-10. 
  • Bennett sank a three at 4:11 to bring the score to 36-17 
  • Jacob Conner for three with just under three minutes of play remaining in the half. 
  • Montgomery slammed home a dunk on an off-the-backboard pass from Bennett, followed it up with a three-pointer less than a minute later to close the first half.
 
Second Half – Dayton 74, NC Central 55
  • L'Etang opens up the second half with a lay-up assisted by Montgomery, and seconds later, hits another lay-up off a turnover.  
  • Bryce Heard hit an open three-pointer to bring the Flyers past the 50-point mark.
  • Conner went up for a quick lay-up at 14:12 to bring the lead to 53-27 
  • Montgomery fed the ball to Thomas up the court for an effortless dunk at the 11-minute mark to go up 35. 
  • Dayton was able to get the reserves in early, with all three walk-ons entering with 1:45 to go up by 25.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
  • 35 – biggest lead for the Flyers in the contest, as well as total minutes played with the lead
  • 33 – bench points for Dayton, led by a career-high 12 from Malcolm Thomas
  • 32 – points in the paint for UD
  • 20 – points off turnovers for the Flyers compared to just 4 for the Eagles
  • 7 – rebounds for Keonte Jones to lead all players
  • 6 – boards for Jacob Conner, a new best in a Flyer uniform
  • 3 – steals in the contest for Javon Bennett and Jacob Conner.
 
UP NEXT
The Flyers head to the Sunshine State for the ESPN Events Invitational at the HP Field House in Orlando, Fla. Dayton will take on Georgetown on Thanksgiving, Thursday, Nov. 27 at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
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