Crusaders overcome 1st Half Deficit on Monday Against the Knights
KEENE, Texas – The University of Dallas men's basketball team (9-8) erased a 15-point halftime deficit and captured a dramatic 76-74 victory on Monday night at Southwestern Adventist University.
Freshman Darrius Colvin (Waco, Texas) would swish the go-ahead trifecta in the far right corner to lift UD in a thrilling come-from-behind win against the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) opponent. Dallas improved to 13-1 against the Knights overall, and have won three games in a row.
The Crusaders trailed 50-35 at halftime and finally caught back up to even the scoreboard, 63-all, with 8:26 minutes left in regulation. Junior Tom Kaiser (Nashville, Tenn.) would complete the layup on to make things tied.
Dallas would take its first lead since just over 12 minutes had remained in the opening stanza, on another field goal by the forward with 7:04 in regulation. Kaiser was responsible for a string of eight straight UD points and helped the squad move ahead 69-65 with 5:19 left.
After each team traded a pair of points, Southwestern Adventist's Kevin Squarzon notched a three-pointer to go back up 72-71. Kaiser muscled another big layup to give the Navy and White another edge, but Tyler Grady sent the Knights forward with both baskets coming at the charity stripe and 1:47 remaining.
The next field goal would not occur until there were six seconds on the clock. Dallas had just forced a critical turnover as sophomore Emmanuel Calton (Keller, Texas) scrambled to force a jump ball on an inbounds pass that turned the ball back to his team. Colvin would then dial from downtown his second trey of the game, and would end up being the heroic difference maker. Southwestern Adventist's last heave from the right side just past half court would bounce short off the right of the front iron. The Crusaders had completed a second half comeback down double-digits for the first time this year. Dallas outscored the Knights 41-24 in the second frame.
It was all visitors from the opening tip as the team etched an 8-0 run through the first two and a half minutes. Southwestern Adventist answered with seven straight and eventually took over later in the half with a 21-3 scoring swing. Down by 10 (31-21) just over the middle juncture of the first, the Knights kept scorching from the field and extended the edge to as many as 17, but UD's Gonzalez raced for a last second layup to cut the margin to 15 at the buzzer.
Early in the second half, the momentum seemed to be with the home team still, as Dallas fell behind its greatest amount of the contest with 17:13 left. That mark was 20, but the Crusaders clawed back with about 16 minutes remaining on the strength of a 21-2 scoring swing. An 11-0 outburst sparked the major UD run that was capped by Kaiser's game-tying inside look mentioned above. There were also three-pointers from Gonzalez, Colvin, and junior Michael Sarrat (Colleyville, Texas).
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
-Kaiser and Colvin each logged double-doubles in this one, with 12 points apiece occurring in the final 20 minutes. Kaiser garnered his second consecutive double-double and sixth on the campaign. The Nashville, Tennessee, native matched a career-high 15 rebounds and was two points away from his personal best he displayed earlier in the year. Kaiser led with a team-high 20.
- Colvin was right behind with 18 points, which was two shy from his career-best two days ago. He also grabbed a career-high 11 boards for his first double-double of his rookie season. Freshman Prince Giadolor (Rockwall, Texas) and Sarrat tossed in 14 and 11 points, respectively.
- Gonzalez was just shy of the double figure scoring quartet with nine points and did dish seven assists. Dallas shot 40.6 percent from the field and 26.3 percent beyond the three-point arc. The Crusaders totaled 46 rebounds with 21 coming from the offensive glass. This did lead to 19 second chance points.
- Southwestern Adventist was led by Travis Gagua and Jacolby Hardin with 25 and 24 points, respectively. The duo combined for 36 first half points led by Hardin's 20. Squarzon dished six assists.
UP NEXT
Dallas remains on the road for a four-game swing over the next two weekends. The matchups are conference with UD meeting Trinity University on Friday at 6 p.m.