Dayton took a 52-50 lead when R.J. Blakney made 1 of 2 free throws with 24 seconds to play and then 1 of 2 free throws one second later. He grabbed the rebound after his own miss on the first free throws and was fouled again.
VCU called timeout with 14.2 seconds left and gave the ball to Baldwin, a sophomore guard who averages 10.0 points per game and shoots 26 percent from 3-point range. He made the shot in front of Dayton’s Malachi Smith.
Smith got the ball after the 3-pointer and raced up court and threw a long pass to DaRon Holmes that was deflected to R.J. Blakney, who missed a shot at the buzzer with two defenders on him.
Anthony Grant said he didn't want to get up on his soapbox, but he got up on his soapbox after the game. This was part of a long opening statement in the postgame press conference. pic.twitter.com/7uRcWW4iBQ
— David Jablonski (@DavidPJablonski) January 6, 2022
Dayton (8-6, 1-0) has now lost four straight games to VCU. The Rams beat the Flyers three times last season.
Toumani Camara led Dayton with 16 points and had Dayton’s only field goal in the last 11 minutes. He tied the game at 50-50 with 1:24 to play.
Dayton scored its other 10 points in the last 11 minutes at the line. It made 19 of 27 free throws, while VCU made 2 of 2.
» PHOTOS: Dayton vs. VCU
DaRon Holmes II scored 12 points for Dayton. Malachi Smith had 11. R.J. Blakney had 10.
Vince Williams led VCU (8-4) with 13 points. Baldwin scored 12.
The Flyers are scheduled to play at George Washington at noon Saturday, but GW has had its first three A-10 games postponed because of COVID-19 issues.
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