Men's Basketball falls to UC Santa Cruz in gritty effort

The University of Dallas men's basketball team (2-14) lost on Friday to the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs, 64-61, to open play in the Independents Round Robin.

Things started off well for Dallas, with the Crusaders jumping out to a six-point advantage at the 18:18 mark of the first-half thanks to junior guard Barrett Brown (Phoenix, Ariz./Mountain Pointe H.S.) netting a jumper.

Brown finished the game with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field, including going 1-for-4 from three-point land and 3-for-8 from the free throw line. Brown also had four rebounds -- one offensive, three defensive.

Dallas would maintain a lead until the 13th minute of the first half. It was then when Greg Palmer tied the game with a layup before Samuel Allen knocked down a pair of free throws to put the Banana Slugs up by two points.

At the midway point, Dallas trailed UC Santa Cruz by seven points, 36-29.

The Banana Slugs opened second-half scoring by netting a three-pointer in the waning seconds of the initial minute.

UC Santa Cruz's biggest lead of 13 points occurred at 17:55, as Jacob Moore put home both attempts from the charity stripe. 

Fouls were rampant, with Dallas being whistled for 19 fouls as opposed to the Banana Slugs' 26 on the game. 

The Crusaders hung tough, clawing back into the game with a gritty defensive effort. Dallas forced 20 turnovers for the game, 11 of which came in the second half.

Freshman forward Ross Davidson's (San Juan Capistrano, Calif./JSerra Catholic H.S.) good free throw attempts at the 7:06 mark of the second-half brought Dallas to within a point of evening the score.

Davidson's final stat-line saw him come up one rebound shy of yet another double-double. He had 23 points on 7-of-19 shooting from the field, including going 9-of-10 from the free throw line.

Dallas was in position to overtake UC Santa Cruz several times in the back-half of the the final period, but could never get over the hump. Missed free throws late proved detrimental to the Crusaders, who were edged in defeat by three points.

The Independents Round Robin rolls on, with UC Santa Cruz battling Chapman University on Saturday, Jan. 22, at 1:00 p.m.

The Crusaders are scheduled to play Chapman on Sunday, Jan. 23, with tip off at 1:00 p.m. This game will conclude play in the Independents Round Robin.