Clarksville, Ark.-No. 17-ranked UT Dallas drilled a school record 16 three-pointers to move past the Eagles 92-76 Monday night in American Southwest Conference play.
The Comets (13-3, 11-1 ASC) seemingly hit from beyond the arc at will against the Eagles (7-9, 5-6 ASC), who were attempting to break a two-game losing skid. UT Dallas hit six in the first half, and then nailed a barrage of three’s in the second half to close the door on Ozarks. A Scott Rodgers’ three-pointer with 9:36 left in the first half gave UT Dallas an 8-point lead, its largest of the half, but the Eagles clawed their way back to get within 28-27 three minutes later. Ozarks would eventually tie the game on two more occasions to keep within striking distance.
However, UT Dallas then displayed a sweet outside shooting touch to open the second half. The Comets hit four three’s in the first four minutes to build a 52-41 lead. Two more three’s came a few minutes later, and the Eagles were looking at a 60-45 deficit only seven minutes into the second half. The Comets didn’t slow there, as another trey extended the lead to 76-57 at the 6:47 mark. Jerard McGinty kept the game from getting out of hand early in the second half as hit a pair from beyond the arc.
McGinty led Ozarks with 22 points, with 16 of those coming in the second half. Andre Williams had 19 points and Blake Mitchem scored 14 points. Both McGinty and Williams hit three three-pointers of their own.
Rodgers and Jared Fleming each had five three-pointers, while Chris Barnes had four of his own. The Comets ended the game hitting 16-of-30 (53%) from behind the three-point line.
Ozarks will host UT Tyler January 23.
Topics: Athletics