Holmes and Cross average 17.7 and 16.6 points, respectively. They each scored 18 in this game. However, few players received louder cheers throughout the night than Dayton forward Zimi Nwokeji, a fifth-year forward who enjoyed his most productive game in two years and delivered his most valuable performance in three years.
Nwokeji, a 6-foot-7 forward from Quincy, Fla., scored nine points on 3-of-6 shooting. He made back-to-back 3-pointers midway through the first half, the second one giving Dayton a 26-12 lead. He converted a 3-point play at the same point in the second half as Dayton stretched its advantage to 53-40. He had not scored nine points or more since tallying 11 in an 88-46 victory against Alcorn State on Dec. 20, 2022.
“It means a lot to me to be able to impact the game and impact winning,” Nwokeji said. “That’s what everyone here wants to do.”
In nine appearances this season, Nwokeki is averaging 3.4 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. He has appeared in 77 games over the last four seasons, averaging 2.9 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.
Nwokeji is the rare player in the transfer-portal era who has stuck with the program despite a lack of playing time. He has struggled to find meaningful minutes and consistent playing time the last three seasons. His minutes have risen and fallen and risen again this season.
Nwokeji has made the most of his limited chances this season. He had five points in the 88-81 victory against St. John’s and seven points two days later in a 69-55 loss to Houston in the Charleston Classic championship game.
In December, Nwokeji missed the Troy game with an illness and then lost his spot in the rotation to freshman forward Petras Padegimas. With Padegimas sidelined in the first two A-10 games, Nwokeji has returned to the rotation. Coach Anthony Grant said simply it was a “coach’s decision” when asked why Nwokeji wasn’t playing after his return from illness.
Asked how he stayed sharp and ready for his opportunity, Nwokeji said, “Just day in and day out, I’m controlling what I can control and doing the same things and keeping myself in a great mindset and a great mentality and understanding that it’s not just me. It’s not just the individual. It’s a team thing. We’re all here trying to do something special. Sometimes it takes sacrifice.”
Nwokeji is the only player remaining from the historic 29-2 season of 2019-20. He committed to Dayton in December 2019 during a post-graduate year at the SPIRE Institute, leaving school early to enroll at Dayton in January. He redshirted that semester but witnessed Dayton’s rise to No. 3 in the national polls from the bench.
Now the 2023-24 Flyers (12-2) have won nine games in a row for the first time since a 20-game winning streak in 2020. Nwokeji sees similarities between the two teams.
“I feel like we can do it again,” Nwokeji said. “I don’t see any reason why we can’t.”
Dayton started the season with 12 scholarship players. It lost Malachi Smith to a season-ending knee injury.Grant decided to redshirt freshmen Jaiun Simon and Marvel Allen. With Padegimas out and Kobe Elvis leaving the game Sunday after hurting his knee in the opening minutes, Dayton had seven scholarship players for most of the game. They needed all of them to contribute.
Nwokeji did his part and not just in the points category. He grabbed an offensive rebound soon after entering the game, and the second chance led to a 3-pointer by Holmes. He finished with three rebounds.
“Zimi did a great job,” Grant said. “He gave us really valuable minutes. I thought he was really active on the glass. He was able to knock down a couple of shots for us.”
“Zimi’s able to come in and be a spark for us,” Holmes said. “Whether it’s scoring or whether it’s rebounding, he does what he needs to do to stay on the floor. He had a great game, and I’ve seen him do it consistently through games and practices. To have a player like that is a very big deal. So credit to him for that.”
Nwokeji played a big role off the bench in his redshirt freshman season, his first season on the court in 2020-21. He averaged 5.9 points and 2.4 rebounds in 19.9 minutes per game. He scored a career-high 29 points in a 91-89 double-overtime loss at Rhode Island.
“Since that Rhode Island game, I’ve had injuries, I’ve had setbacks,” Nwokeji said. “I feel it’s still in there. I believe and have confidence it’s still in there. It’s all about the work and consistency.”
FRIDAY’S GAME
Dayton at Duquesne, 7 p.m., ESPN2, 1290, 95.7
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