Box Score RICHARDSON, TX (02.11.13) - It was no secret that UT Dallas junior forward
Kyle Schleigh was going to break the Comets' single-season scoring and rebounding records Monday night, but pulling down a school-record 21 rebounds in the process was a plus as UTD earned a 67-50 win over Ozarks in American Southwest Conference East Division play.
Picking up their fifth consecutive win, the Comets (now 18-6, 13-5 ASC) are now just one win away claiming a sixth ASC East title and hosting the ASC Tournament for the third time in five seasons. UTD will host LeTourneau Saturday afternoon for Senior Day. Tip-off is 3 p.m. at the UTD Activity Center. Seniors
Reese Dahse and
Mike Timmins will be honored in a presentation prior to the game.
Schleigh, a native of Houston, became the first Comet to ever score 500 points in a season after finishing Monday's game with 13 points and 21 rebounds for his 12th "double-double" of the season. He has exactly 500 points on the year, actually, breaking the previous mark of 490 points set by Martin Salinas (2006-07) and then tied by
Chris Barnes (2010-11). In addition, Schleigh moved into third place on the Comets' all-time scoring list, now with 1,149 points. Now with 239 boards this season, Schleigh breaks his own season record of 219 rebounds, set last year. Schleigh sits second on the Comets' rebounding list with 614 boards, 16 rebounds shy of the mark set by Jordan Eppink (630, 2006-10).
After a sluggish start by both teams, the Comets slowly built an eight-point lead, 10-2, with 12:39 left in the opening half on a jumper by
Dmitriy Chernikov. UTD widened its lead to as many as nine points on three occasions before finally taking a double-digit advantage with just under three minutes to play in the half, 24-13, on a fast-break jumper by
Nolan Harvey. The Comets extended their lead to 33-13 at the break as Ozarks shot just 12.9 percent (4-of-31) from the field in the opening 20 minutes.
The Eagles (now 7-17, 4-14 ASC) tried to make runs at UTD throughout the second half but would get no closer than 12 points. Ozarks' final run came with under minutes to play as the Eagles used a 6-1 run over a stretch of just 45 seconds to draw within 61-49 with 2:08 on the clock. But the Comets would finish the game 4-for-6 from the foul line to ice the win.
Chris McOmber led the Comets in scoring in the victory, finishing with 15 points and 10 rebounds for a "double-double" of his own while
Matthew Medell came off the bench for 14 points. McOmber was 5-for-9 from the field, hitting 4-of-6 free-throws, as he recorded his third "double-double" of the season. Schleigh added six assists and three blocks, both game-highs, along with a steal.
UTD finished the night 24-of-57 (42.1%) from the field, connecting on just 5-of-27 (18.5%) three-pointers, and shot 66.7% (14-of-21) from the foul line. The Comets dominated the boards, out-rebounding the Eagles, 51-37.
For Ozarks, Andrew Cummings finished with 14 points while Ronnie Dodd added 13 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. The Eagles shot just 25.8% (16-of-62) from the floor, making just 2-of-25 (8%) shots from beyond the arc, and hit 16-of-22 (72.7%) free throws.
