ST. LOUIS _ Jalen Crutcher hit a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer in overtime to give the Dayton Flyers one of their biggest victories of the season _ and certainly the grittiest. UD trailed by 13 points at one point in the second half.
No. 13 Dayton beat Saint Louis, 78-76, on Friday. Saint Louis forced overtime on a last-second basket and took a 76-75 lead on two free throws by Yuri Collins with 6 seconds left. Crutcher took the in-bounds pass, dribbled around the 3-point line to get space and launched the game winner with just 0.1 seconds left on the clock.
Dayton won its seventh straight game, improving to 16-2 and 5-0 in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The victory, coupled with a win Tuesday against Virginia Commonwealth, gives Dayton a chance to move into the top 10 for the first time this season in the Associated Press poll.
The Flyers faced a halftime deficit for the first time this season Friday, trailing Saint Louis 33-25.
Crutcher missed a layup in the final seconds of the first half. Obi Toppin rebounded the ball but missed a dunk at the buzzer. It was that kind of half for Dayton, which shot 33% from the field and 10% (1 of 10) from 3-point range.
Saint Louis, the worst free-throw shooting team in the country, could have had a bigger lead. It made 3 of 12 free throws.
Dayton went through a seven-minute stretch in which it scored one point and then cut the deficit to 21-20 only to give up a 10-0 run in the next three-plus minutes.
Jordan Goodwin led Saint Louis with nine points. Ibi Watson scored seven for Dayton. Toppin had six points on 2-of-11 shooting.
Dayton trailed by as many as 11 points. It was the first time this season it trailed by double digits.
