news | March 24, 2026

No. 7 Dayton Stuns March Madness Fans with Rally to Avoid No. 10 Nevada's Upset Bid | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 21: Enoch Cheeks #6 of the Dayton Flyers drives to the basket against Kenan Blackshear #13 of the Nevada Wolf Pack during the first half in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Delta Center on March 21, 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Seventh-seeded Dayton's late surge helped power the Flyers to a narrow 63-60 victory over No. 10 Nevada in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Thursday.

Head coach Anthony Grant's team was dangerously close to losing, trailing 56-39 with just under eight minutes remaining in the second half. Dayton responded with a 17-0 run to tie the game, though.

The teams traded baskets before junior forward Nate Santos finished a tough layup in traffic to give the Flyers a 61-60 advantage. After getting a stop, Santos canned two more free throws to push the lead to three before a potentially game-tying three-point attempt by Nevada missed at the buzzer.

Dayton finished the game by outscoring the Wolf Pack 24-4 over the final seven-and-a-half minutes in regulation, leaving college basketball fans amazed.

SportsCenter @SportsCenter

DAYTON WAS DOWN 17 WITH SEVEN MINUTES TO GO‼️ <br><br>The Flyers soar to their first NCAA tournament win since 2015 ✈️ <a href="">

Kirk Herbstreit @KirkHerbstreit

UD FLYERS!!!!!<br>Unreal. Down 18 with 7 to play. Couldn't buy a basket-finished on a 25-4 run to come back and win it! <br>Dayton hoops has such great history and an incredibly loyal fan base. Congrats to the Flyers and their fans on that shocking comeback. <a href="">@DaytonMBB</a>

The Athletic CBB @TheAthleticCBB

DO YOU BELIEVE DAYTON?!<br><br>The Flyers went on a 19-2 run to take the lead over Nevada.<br><br>🎥 <a href="">@MarchMadnessMBB</a><a href="">

Dave Biddle @davebiddle

25-4 run for Dayton to end the game! Steve Alford still doing Steve Alford-type things. But congrats to the <a href="">#Flyers</a>. What a comeback.

Jake Marsh @PMTsportsbiz

(7) DAYTON PULLS OFF THE INSANE COMEBACK!<br><br>HOLY MOLY!

Sully @sullymygoodname

MY EYES HAVE SEEN THE GLORY OF THE BEST DAYTON TOURNAMENT WIN OF MY LIFE!

Chris Vannini @ChrisVannini

Dayton goes on a 24-4 run down 17 with 7:19 left and wins. <br><br>(The score was 56-39) <a href="">

T3 Bracketology™️🏀 @T3Bracketology

Dayton closed the final 7 minutes on a 24-2 run.🤯

Mo Egger @MoEgger

What a comeback by the Dayton Flyers!!!

Nevada's lack of offensive production down the stretch was surprising, as the team initially scored 34 points in the first half. However, turnovers and missed three-point looks proved to be the difference as the team gave the ball away 12 times compared to 13 assists.

As for Dayton, the win represented the program's first March Madness victory since 2015, which came under former head coach Archie Miller. The Flyers are now set to face off against Arizona in the second round on Saturday at 12:45 p.m. ET.