RICHARDSON, TX (01.25.14) - Trailing at halftime for the first time this season, the UT Dallas men's basketball team used a late rally to earn a hard-fought 76-72 home win over University of Texas at Tyler in American Southwest Conference play Saturday afternoon.
The win extended the Comets' current winning streak to 10 games.
After falling behind, 39-35, at the break, the Comets (now 15-1, 13-0 ASC) would not secure a second-half lead until the 2:07 mark as Kyle Schleigh's jumper from the right side gave UTD a 71-69 advantage. The Comets held the lead for the final two minutes, hitting 5-of-8 free throws down the stretch, to secure the program's 19th straight regular-season ASC victory, dating back to last season, and the fourth double-digit winning streak in program history.
The Comets shot better than 48 percent from the field in the opening half, but nine costly first-half turnovers allowed UT-Tyler to secure a four-point lead (39-35) at intermission. UTD had a rough start to the second half as well, watching the Patriots use a 14-5 run over the first four minutes to grab their largest lead of the game, 53-40, on a three-pointer by Jordan Cannon. Nearly three minutes later, the Comets clawed back to single digits, 55-46, with a Chris McOmber layup with 13:15 to play. McOmber's bucket was part of a 9-0 run by the Comets over a stretch of 2:22, which was capped by a Schleigh three-point play, drawing UTD within four points, 55-51, with 12:22 remaining.
The visiting Patriots answered with a layup and a pair of free throws to regain an eight-point cushion before UTD started its final push. With 8:22 left, Nolan Harvey swiped the ball from Cannon, allowing Matthew Medell to breakaway for an easy layup to draw the Comets within three points, 61-58, for the first time since the opening minute of the half. UTD got within two points at the 6:05 mark when Ryan Smith drained the second of two free throws, and the Comets eventually knotted the game, 67-67, on a Schleigh layup with 5:07 to play.
UTT's Chris Rios gave the Patriots back the lead on a jumper less than a minute later before Nash scored on a put back with 3:00 on the clock, tying the contest, 69-69, and setting the stage for the dramatic finish. On the next UTT possession, Nash stole the ball from Patriot Joe Stephens, setting up Schleigh's go-ahead jumper.
The Comets shot 50 percent or better for the fourth straight contest, and ninth time this season, hitting 27-of-54 shots from the field for the afternoon. UTD was just 6-of-20 (30%) from three-point range, and struggled at the free-throw line, missing 10-of-26 shots. Schleigh finished 8-of-16 from the field and added a team-high seven rebounds along with four assists and three steals.
UTD is now just three wins shy of matching the program's all-time record for consecutive wins, set during the 2011-12 season. The Comets had an 11-win streak in the 2006-07 season and an 10-game streak in 2010-11.
For the Patriots (now 9-8, 8-6 ASC), Cannon had 17 points to lead four UTT players in double figures. Travis Dykman and Nathan Harbour each had 12 points while Stephens finished with 11 points off the bench. The Patriots shot 47.5 percent (28-of-59) from the field, hitting just 5-of-20 three-pointers (25%), and hit 11-of-12 free-throws (91.7%). UTT out-rebounded the Comets, 33-32.
The Comets will play their third home game in five days Monday night as they host Hardin-Simmons, winners of eight of their last nine games. Game time is 7:30 p.m. at the UTD Activity Center.