Gilbert and Jones help No. 5 Iowa State outlast Dayton 89-84 in Maui

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Keshon Gilbert scored 24 points and Curtis Jones added 19 to lead No. 5 Iowa State to an 89-84 win over Dayton in the Maui Invitational on Tuesday.

The Cyclones (4-1) rallied from a nine-point deficit late in the first half and held off the Flyers (5-2) in a game that featured 11 ties and 10 lead changes.

Gilbert made a pair of free throws with 44.9 seconds left to give Iowa State the lead for good. He shot 12 of 14 from the line.

Dishon Jackson had 12 points and six rebounds, and Milan Momcilovic scored 10 for Iowa State.

Malachi Smith scored a career-high 22 points for Dayton.

Iowa State: Point guard Tamin Lipsey, a preseason All-Big 12 first-team pick, was limited to six points and two assists in 16 minutes. He fouled out with 2:42 to play.

Dayton: The Cyclones entered leading the country in scoring defense at 58.8 points per game, but the Flyers shot 58% (29 of 50) from the field and had four players score in double figures.

Gilbert grabbed an offensive rebound and was fouled by Dayton's Zed Key as he went up for a putback with 44.9 seconds left. After a review, the foul was upgraded to a flagrant-1. Gilbert knocked down both free throws, then made it a four-point possession with a driving layup and high finish off the glass to give the Cyclones an 85-81 lead with 26.8 seconds remaining.

The Cyclones made 25 of 29 free throws for the game and shot 60% (15 of 25) from the field in the second half to overcome a 41-37 halftime deficit.

Iowa State will play Colorado for fifth place Wednesday, while Dayton will meet No. 2 UConn for seventh place.

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Dayton forward Zed Key (23) dunks against Iowa State forward Brandton Chatfield (33) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Iowa State won 89-84. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Dayton guard Malachi Smith (11) goes to the basket against Iowa State guard Curtis Jones, left, forward Brandton Chatfield, center, and guard Nate Heise, back right, during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Iowa State won 89-84. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Dayton guard Enoch Cheeks, right, reacts after scoring as Iowa State guard Nate Heise (0) looks on during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Iowa State won 89-84. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Iowa State guard Keshon Gilbert scores against Dayton forward Zed Key (23) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Iowa State won 89-84. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Dayton guard Enoch Cheeks holds his ankle after a collision against Iowa State during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Iowa State won 89-84. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Iowa State guard Keshon Gilbert (10) reacts to scoring against Dayton during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii. Iowa State won 89-84. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Iowa State guard Keshon Gilbert reacts to the 89-84 win against Dayton in an NCAA college basketball game at the Maui Invitational Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Amy St. Pe' won an open seat on the Mississippi Court of Appeals on Tuesday, wrapping up one of two runoffs in judicial races between candidates who advanced from the Nov. 5 general election.

State Sen. Jenifer Branning and Justice Jim Kitchens, meanwhile, were in a tight race as votes were still being counted late Tuesday in runoff election for a Mississippi Supreme Court seat.

Voter turnout typically decreases between general elections and runoffs, and campaigns said turnout was especially challenging two days before Thanksgiving.

Kitchens and Branning faced off in District 1, also known as the Central District, which stretches from the Delta region through the Jackson metro area and over to the Alabama border.

A narrow margin separated the two candidates as votes were being counted late Tuesday. Five candidates were on the ballot for the central district seat in the Nov. 5 election, and 7% of the vote for that race was counted after Election Day.

Branning received 42% in the first round of voting, and Kitchens received 36%. Three other candidates split the rest.

Mississippi judicial candidates run without party labels. But Democratic areas largely supported Kitchens on Nov. 5, and Republican ones supported Branning.

Branning is endorsed by the state Republican Party. She calls herself a “constitutional conservative” and says she opposes “liberal, activists judges” and “the radical left.”

Kitchens is seeking a third term and is the more senior of the Court’s two presiding justices, putting him next in line to serve as chief justice. He is endorsed by the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Action Fund, which calls itself “a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond.”

In September, Kitchens sided with a man on death row for a murder conviction in which a key witness recanted her testimony. In 2018, Kitchens dissented in a pair of death row cases dealing with the use of the drug midazolam in state executions.

St. Pe' will succeed Judge Joel Smith, who did not seek reelection to the 10-member Court of Appeals. The district is in the southeastern corner of the state, including the Gulf Coast.

St. Pe’ and Jennifer Schloegel advanced to Tuesday's runoff from a three-way contest, with St. Pe’ receiving 35% of the vote on Nov. 5 and Schloegel receiving 33%.

St. Pe' is a municipal judge in Gautier. Schloegel is a chancery court judge in Hancock, Harrison and Stone counties.

FILE - Senate Elections Committee Chair Jenifer Branning, R-Philadelphia, explains a facet of an absentee-ballot bill during floor debate at the Capitol in Jackson, Miss., June 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

FILE - Mississippi Supreme Court Presiding Justice James W. Kitchens asks a question, July 6, 2023, before the court in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

FILE - Mississippi Supreme Court justices including Justice Jim Kitchens, seated at right, fourth from top, listen to arguments, July 6, 2023, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)