Iowa tops Dayton, advances in NIT (with slideshow, Matt Gatens video)

IOWA CITY - Matt Gatens got the perfect ending. Now Gatens - and his Iowa teammates - want the happily ever after.

Ten days after Iowa's regular-season home finale ended in defeat, the Hawkeyes (18-16) posted a near-perfect atmosphere in an 84-75 win against Dayton (20-13) in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament. It was Iowa's first postseason win since 2003 and sends the Hawkeyes into the next round at Oregon, which beat Louisiana State 96-76.

Some might say the game was won eight minutes before tip-off when the Hawkeyes entered the court in all-black uniforms to the football anthem "Back in Black." Others might point to the thunderous crowd, 13,190 strong, that relentlessly supported the Hawkeyes.

But on the court, it was sophomore Zach McCabe, who was 9-for-9 from the field and put up 20 points. It was freshman Aaron White scoring 25 points and grabbing 11 boards. It was senior point guard Bryce Cartwright and his 11 assists and only two turnovers. It was sophomore Melsahn Basabe coming off the bench for 15 points. And it was Gatens, who scored only seven points but had four assists and defended Dayton's talented Kevin Dillard.

On the statistical side for Iowa it was 23 assists on 33 baskets. It was shooting 56.9 percent from the floor. It was 48 points in the paint and defending the Flyers to 35.5 percent shooting in the second half.

It was a complete victory.

"I thought right when I came out on to the floor, which is about three minutes before tip, that you could feel you're like sitting in the building and the energy level, and I could see despite the fact that it was an up-and-down game, and it was a physical game, our guys just were not getting tired," Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery said. "And that's really a direct result of the crowd energy."

Iowa attacked the post from the opening tip. The Hawkeyes hit eight of their first nine shots. McCabe scored 16 in the first half. He was physical and active.

"I just had wide-open opportunities and I took them," McCabe said. "I was just being aggressive and just taking it to the basket and just playing smart also."

He was asked if he'd ever been perfect from the field. McCabe quipped, "Maybe high school or fifth grade or something."

White, who became a trending topic on Twitter, set his career-high in points with both inside and outside play. He was at his best when Iowa needed him the most.

With the score tied 49-49 with 16 minutes left, White scored seven points on three consecutive possessions to ignite a 16-3 run. White scored on an inside move, then a dunk off a Gatens' miss and then a 3-pointer. When he left the game for a breather three minutes after his 3-point shot, the fans gave him a standing ovation.

"Yeah, just trying to take advantage of my height and my energy down low, trying to get offensive rebounds and I got open on a couple dunks," White said. "A lot of it is because teammates keep me open."

Then win was everything Gatens wanted. He left the court with 2.7 seconds left to rousing applause and circled around the arena to wave to the fans after the game. But the season's not over, Gatens cautioned. Iowa won't know its game date or time at Oregon until late Wednesday or early Thursday.

"We're not done," Gatens said. "We need to keep going."

DAYTON (20-13)

Oliver 3-11 1-2 7, Kavanaugh 2-4 2-2 6, Dillard 7-14 5-6 23, Johnson 3-8 2-2 8, P. Williams 4-7 2-2 12, Asmus 1-1 0-0 3, Parker 3-10 1-2 9, Vonderhaar 0-0 0-0 0, Fabrizius 0-6 1-2 1, Gavrilovic 3-5 0-0 6, Hill 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-66 14-18 75.

McCabe 9-9 1-2 20, White 10-15 4-4 25, Marble 4-8 0-0 9, Gatens 2-9 1-2 7, Cartwright 1-4 3-4 5, Basabe 6-9 3-3 15, Oglesby 1-3 0-0 3, Brommer 0-0 0-0 0, May 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 33-58 12-15 84.< Halftime_Iowa 44-41. 3-Point Goals_Dayton 9-30 (Dillard 4-6, P. Williams 2-4, Parker 2-7, Asmus 1-1, Johnson 0-3, Oliver 0-3, Fabrizius 0-6), Iowa 6-16 (Gatens 2-6, McCabe 1-1, Oglesby 1-2, White 1-3, Marble 1-3, Cartwright 0-1). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Dayton 35 (Gavrilovic, Johnson 7), Iowa 34 (White 11). Assists_Dayton 10 (Dillard 6), Iowa 23 (Cartwright 11). Total Fouls_Dayton 15, Iowa 12. A_13,190.

IOWA (18-16)