DAYTON, Ohio (Interstat) — De’Shayne Montgomery scored 17 points and Dayton used a dominant first half to cruise past North Carolina Central 74-55 in a non-conference men’s basketball game Saturday at a sold-out University of Dayton Arena.

The Flyers, coming off an overtime road win against Marquette, improved to 5-1 on the season, while the Eagles fell to 2-5.

Dayton seized control from the opening tip, building a 44-20 lead by halftime. The Flyers’ defense was the catalyst, forcing 17 turnovers for the game and converting them into 20 points. They also held a significant advantage in fastbreak points, 14-4, and outscored the Eagles in the paint, 32-22.

The Flyers’ offensive efficiency was starkly higher, posting an offensive rating of 113.8 points per 100 possessions compared to just 79.5 for North Carolina Central. Dayton also capitalized on second chances, grabbing 13 offensive rebounds to the Eagles’ five.

Montgomery, a 6-foot-4 guard from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, added five assists in 26 minutes. He was one of four Flyers to score in double figures. Malcolm Thomas contributed 12 points, Amael L’Etang, a 7-foot-1 center from Toulouse, France, added 11 points, and Jacob Conner finished with 10 points and two blocks.

North Carolina Central was led by Khouri Carvey, a 6-foot-9 forward from Wilson, North Carolina, who scored 15 points and blocked four shots. Gage Lattimore added 13 points for the Eagles, who shot 37.3 percent from the field.

The Eagles showed more life after halftime, outscoring Dayton 35-30 in the second half, but the first-half deficit was too large to overcome. Jae’Daun Slack scored all five of his points in the final two minutes for North Carolina Central.

Dayton finished the game shooting 42.9 percent from the field and was 11 of 19 from the free-throw line. North Carolina Central shot 6 of 14 from three-point range and 11 of 13 from the foul line.

A crowd of 13,407 watched the game at UD Arena.

North Carolina Central travels to face South Carolina Upstate on Tuesday. Dayton’s next game is against Georgetown on Thursday in Kissimmee, Florida.