Dayton 59, No. 24 VCU 55: Jordan Sibert scored 19 points and the visiting Flyers held off the Rams to remain tied for first place in the Atlantic 10.

Sibert scored 15 points in the first half for Dayton (22-6, 12-4 Atlantic 10), which saw a nine-point lead dwindle to one in the final two minutes. Kendall Pollard finished with 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting and six rebounds before fouling out with 4:53 remaining for the Flyers, who are tied with Rhode Island for the conference lead.

Treveon Graham scored nine of his 12 points in the second half on 4-of-14 shooting for VCU (21-8, 11-5), missing a 3-pointer with eight seconds left. Mo Alie-Cox, who finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds, corralled the rebound but missed a short put-back that would have tied the game.

Sibert scored 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting in the first half, and the Flyers closed the period with an 18-8 run to lead 33-29 at halftime. A pair of Sibert free throws gave Dayton a 45-36 advantage with 12:38 remaining before VCU rallied, drawing within 53-52 with 3:53 left on five consecutive points by Graham.

Dyshawn Pierre scored on a turnaround in the lane but Doug Brooks’ basket with 1:53 remaining pulled the Rams within 55-54. Two Pierre free throws re-established a three-point Dayton advantage before Graham hit a free throw to bring VCU within 57-55 and, after Pierre missed on the other end, Graham’s long 3-pointer missed the mark and Alie-Cox’s stick-back was too strong.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Along with Dayton and Rhode Island, Davidson made it a three-way tie with a win Saturday night over George Washington. … VCU G Melvin Johnson missed a breakaway dunk with 3:32 remaining that would have given the Rams a one-point lead. … Graham, fourth in the league in scoring starting the day, scored just three points in the first half on 1-of-6 shooting.