Box Score RICHARDSON, TX (11.24.09) – UT Dallas drubbed Austin College 74-53 on Tuesday night, avenging an overtime loss to the Kangaroos in Sherman, TX, just nine days before.
Jordan Eppink catalyzed UTD with 19 points—including three 3-pointers—and five rebounds, while
Brandon Greene,
Jared Fleming and
Scott Rodgers scored in double figures as the Comets advanced to 9-3 all-time in its home openers at the UTD Activity Center.
But it was UTD's defense that accounted for such a lopsided final. The Kangaroos, losing for the first time this season after a 4-0 start, shot just 28 percent in the second half, and the Comets mounted a 29-3 run shortly after halftime.
“We really held them at bay offensively in the second half,” said UTD coach
Terry Butterfield. “That's a great thing for us defensively.”
On Nov. 15, their season opener, the Comets dropped a 79-77 decision to AC—a loss that snapped their six-game win streak over the 'Roos. UTD committed 21 costly turnovers, despite outrebounding AC.
On Tuesday, UTD turned the ball away just 11 times and shot 43 percent from the field. Plus, the Comets starters score 63 of their 74 points.
“We certainly were disappointed in how we opened the season up there,” said Butterfield. “I was proud of the way we responded, particularly in the second half. I thought it was going to be a struggle the whole way.”
Eppink drained all three of his 3s in the first half, Greene connected on three more in the second, and the Comets made 9 of their 24 attempts (38 percent) from the perimeter.
After holding a slim 31-29 lead at the half, UTD broke the game open, snowballing a 14-1 start into a 29-3 run that was capped by a
Jimmy Witten fastbreak drunk, then a
Scott Rodgers lay-in. With 4:26 left in the game, the Comets held a 72-40, their largest lead of the night.
UTD (3-1) opens American Southwest Conference play this weekend when the Comets play two more games at home—one on Saturday against Mary Hardin-Baylor, the other against Concordia (TX) next Monday—before taking a road trip to Sul Ross St. and Howard Payne beginning Dec. 3.
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