Field Level Media
Dec 19, 2020
Jalen Crutcher scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half as Dayton held off Ole Miss for a 65-62 victory Saturday in Dayton, Ohio.
It was the second straight win against a Southeastern Conference school for the Flyers (4-1), who beat Mississippi State 85-82 in double-overtime last Saturday in Atlanta.
The Rebels (4-1) had a chance to tie in the closing seconds but Devontae Shuler's contested 3-pointer hit the front of the rim.
Rodney Chatman added 21 points and five steals and Ibi Watson scored 11 for Dayton, which shot 51.1 percent from the field and 53.3 percent (8 of 15) from 3-point range. The Flyers committed 17 turnovers and got no points from their bench.
Shuler and KJ Buffen led Ole Miss with 12 points each. Jarkel Joiner scored 10 points and Luis Rodriguez grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds to go with nine points. The Rebels outrebounded the Flyers 41-24, but were held to 40.7 percent shooting and missed 14 of their 21 attempts from beyond the arc.
Mississippi led 31-24 at halftime and took a 39-32 lead on Joiner's 3-pointer with 14:31 remaining.
Dayton answered with a 12-2 run, capped by Crutcher's jumper to grab a 44-41 lead with 10:56 left.
Neither side could maintain momentum over the next 10 minutes, and the Flyers' lead was down to 63-62 with less than 30 seconds to play.
Crutcher converted a couple of free throws to account for the final score.
Ole Miss had held its first four opponents under 60 points.
--Field Level Media