Men's Basketball Lose Tight Battle with St. Thomas
IRVING, Texas - The University of Dallas men's basketball team lost their conference match with the University of St. Thomas 65-62 on Saturday. Theyfall to 9-13 overall on the year and 3-10 in conference play.
Marcus Juarez got the Crusaders off to a hot start, going three for his first three in two and half minutes to give the Crusaders an 8-3 lead. Dallas played unrelenting defense for much of the first half as well, holding the Celts, the number one offense in the conference, scoreless for over four minutes.
The Crusaders led by as many as 14 points in the half, but the Celts finally began to find some rhythm on offense, cutting the deficit to single digits by halftime.
Juarez continued to have the hot hand in the second half, en route to a career-best 22 points, but so too were the Celts heating up. It was a slow and gradual burn as St. Thomas chipped away at the lead, but Dallas had an answer nearly every step of the way. Even when the Crusaders found themselves on the wrong end of a 12-2 scoring run that gave the Celts a 53-51 lead they did not buckle, taking the lead right back with a Jacob Giunta three-pointer and trading the lead back and forth over the next couple of minutes.
Dallas took a 59-55 lead with just over five minutes remaining, which was followed immediately by a two and a half minute scoring drought by both teams, ramping up the tension going into the final three minutes. The Celts scored six unanswered to take a 61-59 lead with a minute and a half remaining, but the Crusaders fought tooth and nail to the final buzzer.
Down three with two seconds remaining, Dallas had the ball and a chance for a buzzer beater off the inbound, but couldn't get the shot off in time. The Celts escaped with the victory, the Crusaders having narrowly missed a dazzling upset.
Juarez led the team with his career-high 22 points, also setting a new career-best with six three-pointers, going 6-of-11 from beyond the arc. Jack Boyle had 10 points and 10 rebounds, securing another double-double as well as five assists.
It was the final home game for four Crusaders this evening: Matt Holloway, Blake Dwyer, Jacob Giunta, and Letrell Toussaint.
Up Next
The Crusaders have three conference games left on the schedule. They will hit the road next Friday, Feb. 10 to face Trinity at 7:30 p.m.