Dayton rallies from 8-point deficit in second half to beat Purdue Fort Wayne

Flyers now 17-17 in last two seasons under Anthony Grant

The Dayton Flyers pulled away in the last 10 minutes to beat Purdue Fort Wayne 91-80 on Friday at UD Arena, improving to 3-0 with third straight home victory to start the season. Dayton is now 17-17 in the last two seasons under coach Anthony Grant.

The Flyers trailed by as many as eight points early in the second half. They went on a 9-0 run starting at the 9:32 mark to take control with a 78-68 lead. They outscored Fort Wayne 49-33 in the second half.

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Josh Cunningham scored 20 points in his season debut. Jalen Crutcher scored 18. Trey Landers had 15. Ryan Mikesell and Jordan Davis each scored 10.

Jhery Matos played the best game of his young Dayton career, scoring seven points and adding four assists, including one behind-the-back pass that led to a layup in the second half.

Purdue Fort Wayne, playing at UD Arena for the first time since 2013, made 13 of 29 3-pointers. It made 3 of 12 in the second half after making 10 of 17 in the first half. Kason Harrell led the Mastodons with 20 points.

HALFTIME RECAP

The Flyers faced a halftime deficit for the first time this season, giving up a 10-1 run in the last two minutes to Purdue Fort Wayne and falling behind 47-42 in the third game of the season.

Fort Wayne made 10 of 17 3-pointers and committed only three turnovers. Dayton had seven turnovers and made 2 of 8 3-pointers.

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Cunningham led the Flyers with nine points on 4-of-5 shooting. Matos and Crutcher each scored seven.

Harrell led the Mastodons with 13 points. He made 3 of 5 3-pointers. Seven different players made 3-pointers for Fort Wayne.

Dayton shot 61 percent from the field and out-rebounded Fort Wayne 15-12.

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