Home-Opener energizes Crusaders past Hendrix Sunday

IRVING, Texas – The University of Dallas men's basketball team (2-4) shot a season-high 50.9 percent (28-of-55) in field goals and would lead by as many as 19 in the home-opener victory on Sunday versus Hendrix College (1-7). Dallas evened the season series by splitting a pair of matchups, and claimed the 81-69 final in front of solid crowd of 457.

Despite shooting a 52 percent (13-of-25) field goal percentage in the opening half, the Crusaders did not record the first made shot from the floor until just over four minutes into the game on a layup by junior Lorenzo Gonzalez (San Antonio, Texas). Freshman Prince Giadolor (Rockwall, Texas) would get the home squad on the board with one of two made free throws two and a half minutes from the opening jump ball.

Down 5-1 early, Gonzalez's lay-in would spark a 7-0 run to give UD its first advantage of the evening. Hendrix countered with a trey from Aaron Steele to knot the scoreboard 8-all. After trading baskets, the Crusaders engineered an 8-0 spurt to go up 22-14. The final five points came from freshman Darrius Colvin (Waco, Texas), who tallied a career-high 10 points in just the first stanza.

Gonzalez notched a trifecta to push the gap to double-digits (27-17) for the first time in the game, but the Warriors answered with eight of the next nine points to cut things within a possession and 3:03 minutes until the break. Giadolor finished with the remaining six points, all on layups, to keep the Navy and White up 34-30 at halftime.

Out of the break, Giadolor would extend his scoring streak to seven on a free throw. He also connected on his lone three-point attempt after junior Tom Kaiser (Nashville, Tenn.) broke the span with a layup to give the freshman 10 of UD's last 12 points. Kaiser created some offense of his own netting seven of the next nine points as Dallas expanded its lead back above double-digits.

A Gonzalez trey capped a 10-2 run at the time. Another triple about nine minutes into the second by junior Victor Garate (Austin, Texas) put the Crusaders up by its greatest margin at the time, 17 (58-41).  

The Warriors dialed in on 10-of-29 (34.5 percent) from beyond the arc and had three in a row to climb back into a 10-point deficit (69-59). Those trio of three's counted towards four of the made one's in the half, but Dallas answered with a three-pointer of its own from junior Michael Sarrat (Colleyville, Texas). That stifled any momentum the guests had left as the Crusaders prevailed for the second time in the last three contests.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Giadolor paced a quartet of double figure scoring performances with his career-best 20 points. This is the second consecutive game the native of Rockwall, Texas, has hit a personal best, topping his previous total by one. Also within the group were Kaiser with 17, Gonzalez with 12, and Colvin with 10.  
• Kaiser garnered his second double-double of the campaign with 16 points occurring in the latter half. He also snatched a career-high 15 rebounds, with 12 on the defensive end. Giadolor also exploded in the second with 13 points. Sophomore Rory MacCallum (Golden, Colo.) etched seven points and rebounds off the bench.
• Neither squad cracked 70 percent at the charity stripe, with Hendrix edging UD 69.2 percent (9-0f-13) to 61.3 percent (19-of-31). The disparity in attempts began in the first half as Dallas was sent 12 times, and only committed a pair of fouls.
• The First Hendrix free throw would be attempted in the second half with 14:45 remaining. After three-straight misses, the Orange and Black sank one from Korbin Dramer three seconds later, after his team garnered the offensive board.
• Leading the Warriors in scoring was Bryce Batchelor with 15 points. He was the only starter in double figures, as Travis Garrett followed closely with 14. Bryce Parker and Steele added 10 apiece.
• The teams were even in turnovers with 18 committed and steals with seven swiped. UD won the battle on the boards 39-30, and dished 20 assists to Hendrix's 18.

QUOTE FROM COACH SAMPLES

"Our guys were excited to finally play a home game. We had a great turn out from our students which made it a fun atmosphere. Our post players (Tom and Rory) really set the tone for us, doing a great job on the glass and finishing in the paint. As a group we played unselfish and made the extra pass to get some good looks, which were capitalized on. Hopefully we can keep this momentum next weekend when we play Sul Ross." –Head Coach Jarred Samples

UP NEXT

Dallas hosts Sul Ross State University on December 12 as its four-game homestand continues. Tip-off set for around 3 p.m.