PITTSBURGH (Interstat) — VCU used a dominant first half and held off a late Dayton rally to win the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament championship 70-62 on Sunday at 84 Lumber Arena.

The Rams built a 40-25 halftime lead behind strong transition play, scoring 25 fastbreak points. The Flyers chipped away in the second half, closing within six points, but could not complete the comeback. Nyk Lewis led VCU with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Amael L’Etang scored 12 points for Dayton.

VCU improved to 27-7 and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Dayton fell to 23-10 and awaits its postseason fate. Attendance was 9,114.