Holmes leads Dayton to double-digit victory at Davidson

Flyers have won six straight in series with Wildcats
Dayton's DaRon Holmes II dunks against Davidson on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2022, at Belk Arena in Davidson, N.C. David Jablonski/Staff

Credit: David Jablonski

Credit: David Jablonski

Dayton's DaRon Holmes II dunks against Davidson on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2022, at Belk Arena in Davidson, N.C. David Jablonski/Staff

DAVIDSON, N.C. — DaRon Holmes II scored a career-high 32 points to lead the Dayton Flyers to a 69-55 victory against Davidson at Belk Arena on Saturday.

Here’s a quick recap of the game:

What it means: Dayton (10-5) won its fifth straight game and improved to 2-0 in the Atlantic 10 Conference with its first victory in a true road game this season. It beat Davidson (8-6, 1-1) for the sixth straight time and won its fourth straight game at Belk Arena.

Star of the game: Holmes made 11 of 14 field goals and 9 of 13 free throws. He’s the first Flyer to score 30 points in a game since Obi Toppin had 31 against North Florida on Dec. 30, 2019. Holmes’ previous career high of 28 points came against Massachusetts in the A-10 tournament last season.

Holmes also had 10 rebounds and four assists.

Stat of the game: Dayton went more than eight minutes without a field goal to start the second half but scored seven points at the foul line in that span. Dayton outscored Davidson 21-9 at the line.

Turning point: Dayton never trailed during the game, but Davidson rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit to tie the game at 47-47 at the 11:12 mark. Dayton regained the lead on two free throws by Toumani Camara at the 10:42 mark. Dayton outscored Davidson 16-6 in the last eight minutes.

Looking ahead: Dayton plays Saint Joseph’s at 7 p.m. Wednesday at UD Arena.

FIRST-HALF RECAP

Holmes II scored 20 points to carry the Flyers to a 44-33 halftime lead.

Here’s a quick recap of the first half:

Key player: Holmes made 8 of 8 field goals, including his only 3-point attempt. He also made all three of his free-throw attempts. He made a jump shot from the baseline on Dayton’s last possession and then looked back at the Davidson bench as he got back on defense.

Key stats: Dayton shot 60.7% (17 of 28) from the field and made 6 of 9 3-pointers. The Flyers had an 18-9 rebounding advantage and committed only three turnovers after having 14 in the first half in their previous game.

Big run: Dayton opened the game with a 10-3 run after scoring the first 10 points Wednesday in a 69-57 victory against Duquesne at UD Arena.

Rotation news: For the third straight game, Dayton has only eight players available: seven scholarship players plus walk-on Brady Uhl, the only player who did not see action in the first half. Malachi Smith, Kobe Elvis, Richard Amaefule and walk-on Ty Locklear are on the bench in sweatsuits because of injuries.

About the Author