Men's Basketball puts No. 25 Chapman University on upset alert, but foul trouble proves costly for Crusaders down the stretch

The University of Dallas Men's basketball team (2-15) concluded play in the Independents Round Robin on Sunday afternoon, falling to the No. 25 Chapman University Panthers, 66-51.

Chapman jumped out to an eight point advantage at the 12:33 mark of the first half. Stimy defense and clutch shooting by Dallas got the Crusaders within two points of the Panthers with 6:51 remaining in the opening period.

Dallas took the lead on their next possesion thanks to a Barrett Brown (Phoenix, Ariz./Mountain Pointe H.S.) made three-pointer. Brown finished tied for a game-high 17 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the field, including sinking 1-of-4 from behind the arc and 6-of-8 from the free throw line. Additionally, the junior guard tallied seven rebounds -- two offensive, five defensive.

The Crusaders saw their lead swell to four points -- largest of the game -- the next time down the floor with another made three-pointer, this time by sophomore forward Zach Matthews (Fort Worth, Texas/Paschal H.S.).

Dallas had the advantage entering halftime, 27-24.

The first minute of the second half proved costly for the Crusaders, as freshman post-player Ross Davidson (San Juan Capistrano, Calif./JSerra Catholic H.S.) quickly amassed three fouls, giving him four on the game.

Davidson would have to sit on the bench until the 7:21 mark of the second half, and would foul out with 2:45 remaining in the contest.

Of note, freshman guard Braeton Hightower (Sperry, Okla./Owasso H.S.) also fouled out for Dallas, leaving the game with 25 seconds to go.

The Crusaders went cold from the field in the middle portion of the period, and Chapman capitalized. At the 7:20 mark, Chapman's Takeshi Clifford put the Panthers up 13 with his made three-pointer.

Senior guard/forward Noah Pettit (Fairfax, Calif./Sir Francis Drake) trimmed Chapman's lead back to single digits with 5:26 left to play. Pettit totaled 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field, including making all six of his attempts from the charity stripe. Rebounding wise, Pettit recorded seven -- four offensive, three defensive.

Dallas tried to claw back into the game by fouling late, but it didn't pay off. When the game ended, Chapman finished with their biggest lead, 15 points, en route to a 66-51 victory.

Up next on the slate for the Crusaders will be a home game against UT-Dallas on Wednesday, Jan. 26th at 7:00 p.m.