Crusaders force Overtime Twice; Trinity's 3-Pointer counts as Winner at the Buzzer
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – It was a wild finish Saturday with the University of Dallas men's basketball team coming back to force two overtimes against Trinity University. However, Brooks Mays lifted the Tigers (9-10, 4-4 SCAC) to a 92-91 victory after sinking a last second three-pointer from the left side near center court.
Dallas (6-12, 1-8 SCAC) trailed by as many as 12 with about nine minutes to play, but rallied back and forced overtime with four unanswered points to close the second half. Another pair of points by UD at the end of first overtime knotted the game again. It happened with Michael Sarrat (Colleyville, Texas) connecting on two free throws en route to a season-high by an individual this year at 12.
Dallas (6-12, 1-8 SCAC) played its only other extra regulation game this season at Hendrix College in the season opener, and won that contest 89-88. According to records dating back to 2003-04, the Crusaders had not played in a double-overtime contest.
STAT NOTABLES
(Individual Notes)
- Sarrat paced all scorers with a career-high 22 points. He was 12-of-13 at the charity stripe. The senior's team-leading nine rebounds also counted as a personal best, which surpassed his previous mark of seven twice last year both against Trinity.
- Lorenzo Gonzalez (San Antonio, Texas) delivered 21 points to match his career-high from last weekend against the same opponent. Gonzalez was perfect from the line for the 4th game in a row and third straight with at least five opportunities. Tonight was 6-for-6.
- Tom Kaiser (Nashville, Tenn.) and Rory MacCallum (Golden, Colo.) completed the quartet of double-digit scorers with 14 and 10, respectively. Kaiser grabbed seven boards and eclipsed 500 for his career.
- Gonzalez led the team with five assists, Sarrat followed with four, and Prince Giadolor had three. UD's starters combined for 14-of-18 team assists.
- Trinity was led by Aaron Knopp with 21 points and 12 rebounds for a double-double. Danny Rivera tossed in 19, Jayden Holden followed with 15, and Mays etched 13 after his game winner.
(Team Notes)
- Dallas was outshot 45.1 percent to 38.9 percent, but made 10 three-pointers compared to a trio by the Tigers. Points at the charity stripe were even at 25, but UD connected at a higher percentage (75.8% - 64.1%).
- Despite the Crusaders committing seven more turnovers (28-21), it was them that tallied a 24-19 advantage in points off turnovers. UD also had the lone two fastbreak points in the entire marathon game.
- There was a slight difference on the boards, with Trinity edging 49-48. Each squad garnered 19 offensive rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Trinity soared ahead in the first three and a half minutes to a 7-0 lead. Rivara scored five of those points including the first layup of the contest and a jump shot that capped the stretch before UD's Giadolor made the first-of-two free throw attempts. Dallas got within a three-point possession at 15:44 with a trey by Gonzalez. Neither team boasted much offense midway through the opening stanza, as a three by Giadolor just made it 19-10.
Things did pick up the next 10 minutes, with the Maroon and Gold holding a steady margin around double-digits and led 39-27 at the break.
In the second half, Gonzalez brought the Crusaders within six points (43-37) about five minutes through that juncture. Trinity responded and pushed the lead back to double-digits over the next several minutes. Trailing by 12 (57-45) with about nine minutes in regulation, Matthew Richelsen (Medina, Minn.) drained a trifecta to narrow the gap in single digits. Two UD field goals later, Logan Fruhwirth (Waynesville, Ohio) tallied a shot from long range and closed a 59-53 margin and seven to play.
The Tigers appeared back in control with a three by Mays at 5:55, but Kaiser etched three points the old fashioned way to equal that back. After two missed free throws by the home side, Kaiser got a layup on a pass from Sarrat to cut the gap at four with just beneath five minutes. The Crusaders traded baskets and used a pair of separate 4-0 runs, including the final four points of regulation; to seal a 72-72 score at the end of the regular period. Sarrats' jumper at 1:11 and Kaiser's layup at 25 ticks were those final points. Trinity only scored once on a Matt Jones layup in the final two minutes.
Heading to the first OT of conference, and second of the year, Dallas came away tied after five minutes. Each team mustered six points, with Dallas needing Sarrat to gain a pair in the last second after a technical foul was assessed against Trinity. Those two gave the senior 11 and marked the 3rd game in a row a player had reached the 10-point plateau at the free throw line.
Dallas clipped a four-point deficit (87-83) in the last 1:37 by scoring five unanswered. These quintet of points counted within Sarrat's seven straight UD points. He got UD within one (87-86) with an old fashioned three-point play. Then with 39 seconds remaining, the guard hit a layup to cap a career night and lift the Crusaders in front 88-87. After a defensive stop for the Navy and White, MacCallum hit both shots at the free throw line with 20 seconds and then the Crusaders garnered another huge stop and 10 seconds to go. Dallas was able to use some time off the clock before a foul with around three seconds sent the team to the line. A split resulted, and Mays dribbled quickly down the floor and positioned for a last-second three, which determined the difference in this nailbiter.
UP NEXT
Dallas hosts Austin College (February 3) and Centenary College (Feb. 5). These tip-offs will follow the women's basketball games around respective times of 7:30 p.m. and 2 p.m.