Keith Waleskowski and other Flyers made the leap in 2003. Obi Toppin, Ibi Watson and Ryan Mikesell kept up the tradition in 2019. Maybe some Dayton players will jump in 2024 — just not Key.
Key will get the rare treat of playing in the Maui Invitational twice. He scored 35 points in three games against San Diego State, Cincinnati and Texas Tech in the 2022 tournament.
“It’s a really fun tournament,” Key said Wednesday after a 74-53 victory against New Mexico State. “It’s obviously a beautiful island. Guys are ready to play. It’s a fun atmosphere. I’m really looking forward to it, and I know the guys are.”
Dayton (5-0) arrived in Maui on Friday. The Flyers play No. 10 North Carolina (3-1) in the final game of the first round on Monday at the Lahaina Civic Center. The game will start at 6:30 p.m. in Maui and 11:30 p.m. in Ohio and will air on ESPN2.
Dayton’s second opponent on Tuesday will be No. 4 Auburn (4-0) or No. 5 Iowa State (3-0), who play in the third game Monday.
This will be the first Maui Invitational played at the Lahaina Civic Center since 2022 when Key and the Buckeyes lost their first game but won their next two to finish fifth. The 2023 tournament, played three months after the wildfires that killed at least 102 people in Lahaina, moved to the Stan Sheriff Center on the campus of the University of Hawaii in Honolulu.
Hundreds of Dayton fans packed the Lahaina Civic Center in 2019 when the Flyers beat Georgia and Virginia Tech before losing to Kansas in the championship game. It should be a similar scene this week.
“It’s rockin’,” Key said. “You don’t expect people to travel because it’s so far, but the fans are loyal. I already asked Malachi (Smith) if Dayton fans travel because I had no idea. He said, ‘Yeah, they travel.’ So I’m looking forward to that.”
Dayton is 9-3 in four Maui Invitational appearances. It finished 2-1 three times and won the championship with three victories in 2003. Every season the Flyers have played in Maui, the victories there have played a part in them earning a NCAA tournament at-large berth.
This eight-team field, though, is likely the most challenging Dayton has ever seen in a November tournament. The combined record of the teams in Maui is 31-2, and the only two losses, by North Carolina and Michigan State, are to No. 1 Kansas.
“It’s pretty stacked,” Dayton coach Anthony Grant said. “It’s a really loaded field. You look at our side of the bracket, and you’ve got three of the top-10 teams in the country. On the other side, you’ve got the two-time defending champion in Connecticut, and then some of the storied programs in college basketball in Michigan State and then Colorado and Memphis. I think it’s great for basketball fans. We got a great group that’ll be traveling out there to Maui, and it’ll be great for people to watch on TV. It’s a great opportunity.”
Here’s a breakdown of the field:
Favorite: Two-time defending national champion Connecticut (4-0) is the favorite, according to BetMGM. The Huskies opened the season by routing four teams ranked 330 and below in the Ken Pomeroy ratings.
UConn ranks second in the Associated Press top-25 poll. It received seven of 61 first-place votes last week.
Connecticut plays Memphis (4-0) in the first game of the tournament Monday. The game starts at 9:30 a.m. in Maui and 2:30 p.m. in Ohio.
Biggest underdog: Colorado (4-0) has the longest odds, according to BetMGM. The Buffaloes beat Boise State in the First Four at UD Arena and then beat Florida in the first round before losing to Marquette, finishing 26-11. Colorado lost its top five scorers from that team.
Colorado plays Michigan State (4-1) in the second game Monday. The game starts at noon in Maui and 5 p.m. in Ohio.
Best start: Auburn (4-0) had the best victory of any team in the tournament in the opening weeks of the season. It beat then No. 4 Houston 74-69 on Nov. 9. Houston fell to No. 7 after that loss. Auburn climbed one spot to No. 4.
Auburn plays Iowa State (3-0) in the third game Monday. The game starts at 4 p.m. in Maui and 9 p.m. in Ohio.
Best player: Auburn’s Johni Broome, a 6-foot-10 fifth-year forward, tops the KenPom.com Player of the Year standings early this season. He averages 20.0 points and 11.3 rebounds.
Best freshman: North Carolina’s Ian Jackson, a 6-2 guard, ranked sixth in the class of 2024, according to Rivals.com. He averages 7.5 points in 13.5 minutes per game. He’s a graduate of the Our Saviour Lutheran School in Bronx, N.Y. That’s also the alma mater of Dayton fifth-year guard Posh Alexander.
Best shooting team: Memphis leads the nation in 3-point shooting percentage (49.1, 27 of 55).
Best NBA Draft prospect: ESPN projects UConn’s Liam McNeeley, a 6-7 freshman forward, to be drafted 10th overall in 2025. He’s averaging 13.5 points per game. He was the No. 17 prospect in the class of 2024, according to Rivals.com.
Best offense: North Carolina ranked ninth in the country in points per game (95.3) through their first three games. The Tar Heels beat Elon and American for their two victories and lost 92-89 to No. 1 Kansas.
The Tar Heels got a head start on adapting to the time change. They played at Hawaii on Friday night and won 87-69. It was a five-point game early in the second half. North Carolina then took control for good with an 11-0 run.
Best defense: Iowa State ranks second in the nation in scoring defense (50.7).
Top transfer: UConn’s Aidan Mahaney, a 6-3 junior guard, ranked 22nd on the 247Sports.com list of top 2024 transfers. He averaged 13.9 points the last two seasons at Saint Mary’s and is averaging 5.8 points in 19.8 minutes per game at UConn.
Credit: MICHAEL CONROY
Credit: MICHAEL CONROY
Past champions: The field includes four programs that have combined to win eight Maui Invitational championships: North Carolina (1999, 2004, 2008 and 2016); UConn (2005 and 2010; Michigan State (1991); and Dayton (2003).
Familiar territory: North Carolina will make its ninth appearance in the tournament. It is 18-3 in Maui.
In its last appearance in 2020, North Carolina beat Alabama, lost to Michigan and beat Oregon. It beat Chaminade, Oklahoma State and Wisconsin to win its last championship in 2016.
• Michigan State and Memphis will each play in the event for the sixth time. Michigan State is 10-5 Maui. Memphis is 6-9.
Michigan State would have played Dayton in the Maui semifinals in 2019 but lost to Virginia Tech in the first round.
• This will be the fifth appearance for Dayton and UConn and the third for Iowa State.
Dayton and UConn are both 9-3 in Maui. Iowa State is 3-3.
New experience: Auburn and Colorado will make their Maui Invitational debuts. Dayton played with both programs in the Charleston Classic in 2012, losing to Colorado in the first round and beating Auburn in the fifth-place game.
Credit: David Jablonski
Credit: David Jablonski
Winningest coaches: In his 30th season at Michigan State, Tom Izzo has a record of 711-296 (.706). Through last season, he ranked ninth among active Division I coaches in career victories.
• Bruce Pearl is 449-218 (.673) in 21 seasons at Milwaukee, Tennessee and Auburn. He’s 218-119 (.647) in 11 seasons at Auburn.
• Tad Boyle is 354-225 (.611) in 18 seasons at North Colorado and Colorado. In 15 seasons at Colorado, he’s 302-183 (.623).
• Anthony Grant is 346-182 (.655) in 17 seasons at Virginia Commonwealth, Alabama and Dayton. He’s 153-72 (.680) in eight seasons at Dayton.
• Dan Hurley is 296-163 (.645) in 15 seasons at Wagner, Rhode Island and UConn. He’s 145-58 (.714) in seven seasons at UConn.
ª T.J. Otzelberger is 172-98 (.637) in nine seasons at South Dakota State, UNLV and Iowa State. He’s 73-35 (.676) in four seasons at Iowa State.
• Penny Hardaway is 136-62 (.687) in seven seasons at Memphis.
• Hubert Davis is 80-32 (.714) in four seasons at North Carolina.
2024 Maui Invitational schedule
(All times Eastern)
Monday, Nov. 25
Game 1: Memphis vs. UConn, 2:30 p.m. on ESPN2
Game 2: Colorado vs. Michigan State, 5 p.m. on ESPN2
Game 3: Auburn vs. Iowa State, 9 p.m. on ESPNU
Game 4: Dayton vs. North Carolina, 11:30 p.m. on ESPN2
Tuesday, Nov. 26
Game 5: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, 3:30 p.m. on ESPN2
Game 6: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 6 p.m. on ESPN
Game 7: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser, 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU
Game 8: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 11 p.m. on ESPN
Wednesday, Nov. 27
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 2:30 p.m. on ESPN/ESPN2 (Fifth place game)
Game 10: Game 6 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 5 p.m. on ESPN (Championship game)
Game 11: Game 6 loser vs. Game 8 loser, 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2 (Third place game)
Game 12: Game 5 loser vs. Game 7 loser, 12 a.m. Thursday on ESPN2 (Seventh place game)
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