No one would confuse a first-round National Invitation Tournament game with paradise, even if palm trees surrounded the building and typical Florida sunshine bathed the arena, but for the Dayton Flyers, any basketball is better than none.
That’s why it was a “straightforward decision,” as Athletic Director Neil Sullivan called it, to play in the NIT, and that’s why an 86-79 victory against Florida Atlantic is a good thing. There’s more basketball ahead for Dayton — perhaps as many as four games.
“We don’t take anything for granted,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said after the game. “In life, you’ve got to understand who you are and understand you’ve got to be grateful for every opportunity you get. Nothing’s promised.”
Fifth-year forward Nate Santos said it was an easy decision to play.
“Nobody wanted to end the season like that,” he said. “We just want to come out and compete and take advantage of the opportunity.”
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
Here are three takeaways from Dayton’s 33rd game:
1. Javon Bennett enjoyed the best night of his career: The Dayton junior guard scored a career-high 30 points. He made 10 of 16 field goals, including 8 of 12 3-pointers. He reached his previous career high of 26 points as a freshman at Merrimack in March 2023.
“I felt good,” Bennett said. “In the second half, I came out hitting, and the guys were finding me.”
Bennett, a native of Orlando, made the most of his first college game in his home state. His parents, grandparents and a couple uncles were among the family members who drove 2½ hours south to see him play.
Norm Grevey still owns the Dayton record with nine made 3s in a game. He set the record against Bradley on Dec. 22, 1990. Bennett joined Shawn Haughn (1994) and Josh Parker (2011) on the list of Flyers who have made eight 3s in a game.
“Javon’s a good player,” Grant said. “The shots fell. It was great. Obviously, he had mom, dad, extended family here. For them to come see him play and for him to have that type of performance on that stage, it was awesome. I’m just happy for him.”
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
2. Florida Atlantic lost the first postseason game played at Baldwin Arena: Two years after reaching the Final Four and one year after it lost in overtime in the first round of the NCAA tournament, Florida Atlantic (18-16) couldn’t take advantage of the home-court edge in front of a crowd of 1,846 at 2,500-seat Baldwin Arena.
Dayton built a 44-38 halftime lead and led 44-40 early in the second half. Bennett then made two straight 3s to push the lead to double digits for the first time. The Flyers led by as many as 19 points.
Florida Atlantic got as close as five points in the final minute before Dayton sealed the game at the free-throw line.
First-year coach John Jakus, who took over the program when Dusty May left for Michigan, said only two players on his roster had appeared in postseason games, not counting the American Athletic Conference tournament.
“This was incredibly important for us and our players,” Jakus said, “and it’s something we were really excited to do. I love basketball, and I want to keep going, and I don’t want to shy away from challenges. I’m thankful for this challenge. Now the last thing I want to say is our expectations are higher than this.”
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
3. The path forward includes another big challenge for Dayton: The Flyers likely would wanted a second-round game Sunday, so they would have an extra day of rest. Instead, they will play early Saturday.
Dayton (23-9), the No. 1 seed in its eight-team region, advanced to play Chattanooga (25-9) at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Chattanooga won 109-103 in triple overtime Tuesday at Middle Tennessee State.
If Dayton wins Saturday, it will play No. 2 seed George Mason (27-8) or Bradley (27-8) in the quarterfinals at UD Arena on Tuesday or Wednesday next week. George Mason beat Samford 86-69 on Wednesday. Bradley beat North Alabama 71-62.
Teams that win three games in the NIT will advance to the semifinals at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Dayton last won the NIT in 2010.
“If we’re going to play in this, we’re going to try to win the whole thing,” Santos said.
SATURDAY’S GAME
Dayton at Chattanooga, 11:30 a.m., ESPN2, 95.7, 1290
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