SHERMAN, TX (12.15.10) - The UT Dallas men's basketball team needed some clutch free throw shooting late Wednesday night to hold off Austin College and wrap up a 69-62 non-conference win over Austin College.

The Comets (6-2), who had let the 'Roos charge back from a 15-point deficit, broke a 60-60 stalemate in the games final 76 seconds to secure the win

An Austin College three-pointer with 3:35 left had erased what had been a dominating lead for the Comets and tied the score at 60-60. After a back-and-forth scoreless battle between the two teams over the next two minutes, senior Curtis Davis drew a foul and drained a pair of foul shots to put the Comets back in front. On the next posssession, freshman Kyle Schleigh grabbed a key defensive rebound in traffic, then doubled the Comets lead to four points with two more free throws, giving UTD a 64-60 cushion with 53 seconds left.

But the 'Roos were not finished. Inside of a minute, AC cut the lead back to two on their next possession with a pair of free throws. Forced to foul, the 'Roos sent junior Greg Chiasson to the line again, but were still in reach at 65-62 with :18 after he hit just one of two shots. A long downcourt pass to AC 3-point gunner Jordan Hancock, however, slipped through his hands out of bounds with :13 left. Davis then put the nail in the coffin with a layup off a long inbound pass and Chiasson added two more free throws in the final seconds to ice the game.

The Comets (now 6-2) held a nine-point lead at the break, 33-24, after the two teams traded leads throughout the opening 20 minutes. UTD extended its lead to as many as 15 points early in the second after a pair of free throws by junior Chris Barnes to give the Comets a 41-26 cushion with 17:11 remaining. But AC (which had shot just 27.6 percent in the first half) caught fire, outscoring the Comets 34-19 over the next eight minutes to eventually knot the game, 60-60, with 3:35 remaining on a trey by Hancock.

UTD shot 51.1 percent (24-of-47) from the field as a team, hitting 4-of-12 shots (33%) from three-point range, and shot 73.9 percent (17-of-23) from the foul line. Barnes led four Comets in double digits with 21 points. Chiasson and Davis each had 14 points and freshman Carter Nash came off the bench for 12 points, 10 in  the first half. Davis also led UTD in rebounding with nine boards.

The Comets return to action Saturday afternonn when the travel to Ozarks for their American Southwest Conference East Division opener. Tip-off is 3 p.m. in Clarksville, Ark.