Home crowds get their turn as Cincinnati and Dayton move rivalry to campus

The Cincinnati Bearcats and the Dayton Flyers are finalizing a home-and-home series that will take place this upcoming season at Fifth Third Arena and UD Arena in 2026-27, first reported by CBS Sports insider Jon Rothstein. The Bearcats and the Flyers played each other the last two seasons at Heritage Bank Arena in downtown Cincinnati as part of a neutral-site agreement.

Dayton won in 2023 convincingly with a final score of 82-68. Simas Lukosius led the Bearcats in scoring with 14 points while future first-round pick Daron Holmes led the Flyers with 28 points. The Flyers shot 30 free throws this game, making 28 of them, while the Bearcats shot 16 free throws, making only 8. The Bearcats had 20 offensive rebounds this game compared to the Flyers' 6, and had 20 second-chance points compared to only 2 second-chance points for Dayton.

Cincinnati won the Hoops Classic this past season with a final score of 66-59. Dan Skillings Jr. led all scorers with 17 points while also grabbing 6 rebounds and a game-high 4 steals. The Flyers had 4 players in double figures but it wasn't enough as 17 turnovers was the game deciding factor.

The early 2000s rivalry was renewed in 2023, marking over 13 years since the two teams last faced off against each other. Dayton had won the first game back from a 13-year break while Cincinnati won last season. Moving the Hoops Classic to a home-and-home series is a good move, as both schools will be able to show off their incredible home atmospheres.

The average attendance of the Hoops Classic since it was renewed is 13,827 fans in attendance over the last two years with it being almost 50% of each fanbase in attendance. Fifth Third Arena and UD Arena both have similar capacities to that number, but with there being a clear home crowd now, it will have more of a rivalry feel that was needed.