DaRon Holmes II carries Dayton past Cincinnati

DaRon Holmes II scored 28 points on 10-for-17 shooting and Dayton pulled away for an 82-68 win over host Cincinnati on Saturday evening.

Kobe Elvis added 27 points, including 14-for-14 shooting from the free-throw line, as Dayton (8-2) won its fifth game in a row. Koby Brea scored 12 points on 4-for-5 shooting from beyond the arc.

Simas Lukosius scored 14 points off the bench to lead Cincinnati (8-2). Day Day Thomas finished with 12 points and Aziz Bandaogo scored 11.

The schools, which are about 50 miles apart in southwest Ohio, faced each other for the 92nd time in the series' history. It was the first meeting between the programs since 2010.

The Flyers opened the second half with a 22-12 run to pull ahead 57-41 with 11:19 to go. Nate Santos scored five consecutive points during the surge with two free throws followed by a three-point play.

Cincinnati fell behind by as many as 18 points when Dayton grabbed a 63-45 lead with 9:02 remaining. Elvis made a pair of free throws to secure that lead for the Flyers.

The Bearcats pulled within nine points when a free throw by Bandaogo cut the deficit to 71-62 with 3:15 left. But that was as close as Cincinnati would get, as a dunk by Holmes on the next possession pushed the Flyers' lead back to double digits.

The free-throw line proved to be a major difference for the Flyers. Dayton went 28-for-30 from the charity stripe, while Cincinnati shot 8-for-16 from there.

Dayton led 35-29 at the half.

In front of a divided crowd at the Heritage Bank Center in downtown Cincinnati, the Bearcats jumped out to an 8-3 lead to start the game. Bandaogo converted a three-point play to cap the early outburst.

Dayton answered with a 12-3 run to grab a 15-11 lead. Brea made a pair of 3-pointers during the run.

Holmes made a layup in the final minute of the first half to give the Flyers a six-point edge at halftime.

—Field Level Media