DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Chris Johnson scored 13 points and Dayton used a 19-1 second-half run to pull away and beat Illinois State 63-42 in the opening round of the NIT on Wednesday night.
Chris Wright grabbed 11 rebounds to lead Dayton (21-12) to a 42-27 advantage on the boards. The Flyers will play at Cincinnati on Wednesday in the second round
Osiris Eldridge, the Missouri Valley Conference’s leading scorer, shot only 4 of 15 but led the Redbirds (22-11) with 12 points.
Dayton saw its 13-point lead cut to 42-37 with 10:27 to play, but Johnson started the Flyers’ huge run with a 3-pointer.