ESPN Events Invitational: Dayton routs Miami to end three-game losing streak

The dreams of the Dayton Flyers came true in the land of Mickey Mouse, who brought out the game ball Thursday for the first game of the ESPN Events Invitational.

Dayton needed a victory of any sort after three straight losses and didn’t get just any victory against Miami. Dayton dominated for most of the afternoon and won 76-60 at the HP Fieldhouse at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports in front of an arena full of UD fans, who chanted “Let’s go Flyers!” in the final seconds.

Dayton (2-3) earned a rematch with Kansas, which beat Dayton 90-84 in overtime in the Maui Invitational championship in 2019, in the semifinals Friday. The game will take place around 1:30 p.m. or 20 minutes after the 11 a.m. consolation-round game between Miami and North Texas.

The fourth-ranked Jayhawks (4-0) beat North Texas 71-59 in the second game Thursday.

Dayton shot a season-best 57.9 percent (11 of 19) from 3-point range against Miami (3-2). The Hurricanes made 4 of 20, which was close to what Dayton made (4 of 21) in its previous game against Austin Peay on Saturday.

Daron Holmes II led Dayton with a career-high 15 points. Elijah Weaver scored 14 points and made four 3-pointers in the second half. Malachi Smith scored 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting.

HALFTIME RECAP

The Flyers played their best half of the season, building a 36-25 halftime lead.

Dayton led by as many as 13 points and took control with a 9-0 run midway through the half.

Holmes II led Dayton with 12 points on 4-of-4 shooting. Mustapha Amzil scored eight points and made 2 of 4 3-pointers. Malachi Smith scored seven points.

Dayton, which has shot 22 percent from 3-point range this season, made 4 of 9 3-pointers in the half and 14 of 26 shots from the field.

Miami made 9 of 30 shots from the field and 1 of 11 3-pointers.