Dayton point guard sidelined for NIT game at Toledo

Malachi Smith wearing protective boot four days after ankle injury
Malachi Smith stands next to strength coach Casey Cathrall as his teammates warm up for a game against Toledo in the first round of the NIT on Wednesday, March 16. 202, at Savage Arena in Toledo. David Jablonski/Staff

Credit: David Jablonski

Credit: David Jablonski

Malachi Smith stands next to strength coach Casey Cathrall as his teammates warm up for a game against Toledo in the first round of the NIT on Wednesday, March 16. 202, at Savage Arena in Toledo. David Jablonski/Staff

Dayton Flyers point guard Malachi Smith will not play Wednesday against Toledo in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

Smith suffered an ankle injury Saturday on the last play of the first half in a 68-64 loss to Richmond in the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament.

Smith was not in uniform as he sat on the bench courtside at Savage Arena as his teammates warmed up an hour before the game Wednesday. He had a protective boot on his left ankle.

Dayton and Toledo play at 7 p.m. The winner will play Vanderbilt on the second round in Nashville on Saturday. Vanderbilt beat Belmont 82-71 on Tuesday.

Dayton, the top overall seed in the NIT, will not play at home unless it reaches the quarterfinals next week because UD Arena is booked with boys basketball state tournament games this weekend.

The possible opponents for Dayton and Toledo include Xavier, which beat Cleveland State 72-68 on Tuesday and fired its coach, Travis Steele, on Wednesday, or Florida or Iona.

Florida, which is also looking for a new coach after Mike White left for Georgia, and Iona play at 9 p.m. Wednesday in Gainesville.

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