Box Score RICHARDSON, TX (12.20.09) – The Comets' seven-game win streak evaporated in a 75-68 loss to McMurry on Sunday, sending No. 9 UT Dallas into the holidays—and another two-week layover—with a headache.
McMurry (7-2 overall), a team that sits atop the American Southwest Conference's West Division with a 5-1 mark, punctuated a nip-and-tuck affair with an 11-0 run in the game's final two minutes. And for the second straight contest, UTD allowed an opponent to shoot over 50 percent from the field. Howard Payne did so in a Comet win back on Dec. 5. McMurry did it once more, 15 days later.
The West Division leaders also capitalized on turnovers that UTD uncharacteristically made, most of which came in the game's waning moments. McMurry's Ryan Boyd and Jamal Anene each turned steals into fastbreak buckets, building an insurmountable 10-point lead with 11 seconds left on the clock.
“They just really denied us to what we wanted to do,” said UTD coach
Terry Butterfield after watching his team slip to 7-2 overall and pick up their first ASC loss of the season. “When it comes down to the end of the game, it's about making plays. They made a bunch of plays. We didn't.”
The Comets shot a season-low 36 percent in the first half, yet still entered recess with a 35-31 advantage.
Scott Rodgers, UTD's leading scorer, totaled 12 points on just 4-of-15 shooting—including 0-for-6 from distance—while his supporting cast of wingmen did little to aid the Comets' efforts from the perimeter.
Jimmy Witten, however, recorded his best outing since the team's season-opening loss at Austin College back on Nov. 15. The junior forward pumped in 19 points and added six rebounds, and even keyed a 7-0 run himself to keep the Comets afloat midway through the second half.
“When he gets rolling he can really be a huge factor in what we're doing,” said Butterfield. “I'm hoping that this performance will springboard him a little.”
Jordan Eppink chipped in with 13 points while
Brandon Greene, following up from a 17-point outing against HPU, registered 10. UTD's starters combined for 60 of the team's 68 points.
The Comets have now dropped two straight decisions to McMurry, dating back to last season. UTD hiccupped against McM amid its ASC Championship season in 2008-09, faltering in a 63-61 nail-biter back on Jan. 3, 2009.
This year, despite losing their top-three leading scorers from 08-09, McMurry has been rejuvenated by lineup rife with transfers, including guard Jeremie Hart (Washburn Univ.). Hart, the ASC West Player of the Week for Dec. 1-5, dropped in a team-high 19 points on Sunday.
“Other than the fact that we're sad to lose at home like that, I thought they were very physical,” said Butterfield. “That's something we have to learn to contend with.”
The Comets will now have 13 days off before facing UT-Arlington, a NCAA Division I program, on Jan. 2. UTD is 1-1 all-time against the Mavericks after pulling off an upset win back on Dec. 30, 2006.
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