Dayton takes over in final 10 minutes to win opener against UIC

Dayton played in front of a sold-out crowd of 13,407, the first sellout at the arena since March 7, 2020, and the crowd played a big role in the run, coming to life to will the Flyers to a win.

Dayton trailed 46-37 with 10:44 to play. The run started on a layup by Toumani Camara with 10:32 remaining. The run ended on a layup by Elijah Weaver with 4:04 to play. Dayton led 56-46 at that point.

Dayton won its 17th straight season opener. It has not lost its first game since losing 73-66 to Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 21, 2004.

» WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Flyers win opener against Alabama A&M

In his first game with the Flyers, the Georgia transfer Camara led the team with 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting and had a team-high 10 rebounds. Another newcomer, DePaul transfer Kobe Elvis, scored 10 points.

DaRon Holmes II led the freshmen class with nine points in his Dayton debut. R.J. Blakney scored nine points in the first game of his second season.

Elijah Weaver led the reserves with eight points. Kobe Brea scored six points.

Dayton struggled from 3-point range (2 of 14), while UIC made 10 of 28. The Flames shot 26.7 percent (4 of 15) in the second half from long range.

Dayton outscored UIC 14-2 at the free-throw line and had a 41-27 rebounding advantage.

HALFTIME RECAP

Illinois-Chicago outscored Dayton 19-2 in the final seven minutes of the first half to build a 32-25 halftime lead.

Dayton led 23-13 and then saw the Flames take control with a barrage of 3-pointers. UIC made 6 of 13 3s in the half, while Dayton made 1 of 10.

Zion Griffin led UIC with 14 points and made a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer.

Dayton started the same five players as it did in the exhibition game against Cedarville: Toumani Camara; Koby Brea; R.J. Blakney; DaRon Holmes II; and Kobe Elvis.

Elijah Weaver, Mustapha Amzil and Malachi Smith were the first players off the bench, and Moulaye Sissoko also saw time in the first half.