NCAA Basketball: Early breakout stars to watch for 2022-23 season
By Shea Irish
Malachi Smith
When Dayton matched up with Kansas in late November at the ESPN Events Invitational, Ochai Agbaji was not the most impactful player on the floor that day. Neither was David McCormack. Instead, it was the Flyers’ 6’0″ freshman PG, Malachi Smith. He filled the box score with 10 points, five rebounds, six assists, and two steals leading his team to an upset of the eventual National Champion Jayhawks.
Smith led the Flyers to four other wins over NCAA Tournament teams, including victories over ACC opponents Miami and Virginia Tech. Against the Hurricanes, he had 14 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists. He posted 6 or more assists in 16 different games last year, including 12 vs St. Bonaventure and 11 on the road against Ole Miss.
After announcing the 2022 NCAA Tournament field, the committee released that Dayton was the first team left out. The Flyers had a double-digit lead over Richmond in the A-10 Semifinals before Smith suffered a game-ending injury. The Spiders would rally and win that game, showing just how important Smith was to his team. If the injury never happened, they more than likely would have won that game to advance to the A-10 Championship and hear their name called by the NCAA Tournament committee.
In a 2022 Atlantic 10 All-Rookie selection, the crafty point guard finished the year averaging 9.3 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 5.3 APG, and shot 40% from 3-point range. Look for him to improve even more in his sophomore season and make sure the Flyers aren’t sweating out another Selection Sunday.