Wichita State and Dayton have a lot in common. Each mid-major has a routine of upsetting lower-seeded teams in the NCAA Tournament. Friday night, when the Flyers and the Shockers take the court with one another, two point guards with different jerseys, each with the name “Smith” engraved in the back, will take the court.

Dayshon Smith (Dayton) and Daishon Smith (Wichita State), go head-to-head.

Dayshon is no newcomer to the NCAA Tournament. He’s appearing in his fourth.

Dayton’s Dayshon goes by “Scoochie” — a name given to him by his grandpa.

Scoochie is a point guard for the Flyers. he averages 13.5 points per game, 3.1 rebounds, and 4.5 assists.

“Scoochie Smith is a great floor general,” Daishon said. 

Daishon is a first-timer to the NCAA Tournament. He said watching film on Dayton throughout the week allowed him to study Scoochie in depth.

“I’m learning from him and learning the things he doesn’t do so well,” Daishon said. “We’ll do whatever it takes to slow him down.”

Daishon said to slow a player like Scoochie down he has to pressure the ball, slide his feet and stay between him and the rim.

Daishon, a junior college transfer to Wichita State, made a standout start to his first year. In early December, Daishon made  SportsCenter with an emphatic slam dunk. Daishon has played as a back-up point guard to Landry Shamet and Conner Frankamp. He’s averaged five points, 2.3 rebounds and two assists.

Daishon is a player head coach Gregg Marshall can jump out and lead in scoring either craftily driving the lane or stepping back and shooting threes.

“At any given time, whether it’s Daishon Smith or Landry Shamet or Conner Frankamp or Austin Reaves — we’ve got two point guards out there in terms of their mentality,” Marshall said.