Men's Basketball Defeat Colorado College

IRVING, Texas - The University of Dallas men's basketball team won their conference match with Colorado College 74-69 on Friday.  They improve to 9-11 overall on the year and 3-8 in conference play.

It was a thrilling contest from start to finish.  The Maher Center was raucous with a filled student section, and both teams came flying out of the gates at full throttle.  The two sides traded the lead for much of the first half; with nine minutes remaining, the Crusaders took the lead for what would ultimately be the final lead change of the game.  

Dallas outscored the Tigers 25-8 over an 11 minute span to take a 36-22 lead, their largest lead of the game.  The Tigers sank a couple of shot in the dying seconds of the period, giving the Crusaders a 10-point going into halftime.

The battle was fierce in the second half.  The Tigers fought tooth and nail to cut into the lead and were quite successful, pulling themselves within three points five times in the second half.  But that would be the closest they ever got, as the Crusaders always had an answer.  

For a brief moment there was a battle for long range supremacy, but the Crusaders also came out on top there thanks to Marcus Juarez and Louis Christifano Jr., who has been excellent from beyond the arc as of late.  

The Tigers gave themselves a chance, trailing by just three points with six seconds on the clock,k but Matt Holloway iced the game with a pair of free throws to give the Crusaders their fifth win in their last six games.

After a cold first half, Jack Boyle finished as the night's leader in points and rebounds with 18 and 10, respectively.  Christifano Jr. tallied 15 points, making it three straight games with at least 10 and four of his last five games.

Up Next

The Crusaders have their final home conference weekend coming up.  Next, they will host Centenary College on Friday, Feb. 3 at 7:30 p.m.