Chris Wright had 17 points, 15 rebounds and five assists and Dayton advanced to the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament championship game for the first time since 2004 with a 64-61 victory over stubborn Saint Joseph's on Saturday.
Chris Johnson added 19 points for the ninth-seeded Flyers (22-12), who will play in the final on Sunday.
Langston Galloway had 16 points and Idris Hilliard 15 for Saint Joseph's (11-22), which reached the semifinals with overtime wins over George Washington and Duquesne in the first two rounds.
Down 11 with 5:33 left, the Hawks pulled within two, 63-61, with 8.8 seconds to play on two free throws by Galloway. Dayton's Josh Parker hit a free throw with 5.8 seconds left for the final margin.
Saint Joseph's had a couple of chances to tie, but turned the ball over on an inbounds play in front of their own bench with 2.8 seconds to go.
