DAYTON — Brian Roberts scored 21 points to lead third-seeded Dayton to a 66-57 win over Cleveland State in the first round of the National Invitational Tournament on Wednesday.
Roberts scorched sixth-seeded Cleveland State on 7-of-10 shooting, and the undersized Vikings had no answer for 6-foot-10 Kurt Huelsman inside, especially with Cleveland State center Chris Moore in foul trouble.
Huelsman tallied 12 points, and Marcus Johnson and Andres Sandoval each added 11 for Dayton (22-10).
The Vikings (21-13) had the lead for nearly six minutes in the first half, but surrendered a 15-4 run to the Flyers to end the half.
Dayton extended its lead to 15 in the second half on a Jimmy Binnie 3-pointer from the corner with 18:17 to play.
A final surge by the Vikings trimmed Dayton’s lead to six with 3:50 remaining, but Cleveland State missed 5 of 6 shots down the stretch.
Cedric Jackson led Cleveland State with 11 points, and Joe Davis and D’Aundray Brown chipped in 10 apiece.
Dayton — which won the NIT in 1962 and 1968 — advanced to play at No. 2 seed Illinois State on Monday night.
This was the Cleveland State’s first postseason game since the 1988 NIT.
The Vikings’ hopes for an NCAA berth vanished with a loss in the Horizon League title game to Butler.
The Flyers, who won 14 of their first 15 games, lost nine of their final 16, and were defeated in the Atlantic 10 Tournament’s quarterfinals by rival Xavier of Cincinnati.

Dayton 66, Cleveland State 57

CLEVELAND STATE (21-13): Brown 4-4 2-2 10, Bullock 3-9 2-4 8, Tandy 1-4 2-2 4, Jackson 3-10 4-7 11, Watson 1-1 0-0 3, Davis 3-9 2-3 10, Francis 0-3 0-0 0, Fields 2-2 0-0 4, Cole 3-8 0-0 7, Moore 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 20-52 12-18 57.
DAYTON (22-10): Binnie 2-9 0-0 5, Huelsman 4-5 4-7 12, Roberts 7-10 4-5 21, Sandoval 4-6 2-2 11, Johnson 3-5 4-7 11, Perry 1-2 0-0 2, Warren 0-3 0-0 0, Little 2-2 0-3 4, Searcy 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-42 14-24 66.
Halftime—Dayton 38-30. 3-Point Goals—Cleveland State 5-20 (Davis 2-6, Watson 1-1, Cole 1-4, Jackson 1-4, Francis 0-2, Bullock 0-3), Dayton 6-19 (Roberts 3-6, Johnson 1-2, Sandoval 1-2, Binnie 1-7, Perry 0-1, Warren 0-1). Fouled Out—Moore. Rebounds—Cleveland State 26 (Bullock 7), Dayton 33 (Huelsman 7). Assists—Cleveland State 14 (Jackson 5), Dayton 15 (Binnie, Huelsman, Sandoval 3). Total Fouls—Cleveland State 20, Dayton 17. A—7,012. 

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