MARSHALL, TX (02.26.15) - The UT Dallas men's basketball team had its season come to an end Thursday afternoon with a 77-63 loss to Hardin-Simmons in the opening round of the American Southwest Conference Tournament, held on the campus of East Texas Baptist.

UTD (now 16-10) traded leads with Hardin-Simmons over the first half and even had a one-point lead at the break, but the Cowboys would outscore UTD, 48-33, over the final 20 minutes of the contest.

The Comets grabbed their first lead of the game with 11:18 left in the first half as Ryan Horton lifted UTD to a 14-12 advantage. UTD and the Cowboys battled through seven ties over the first 20 minutes before Matthew Medell hit a three-pointer with nine seconds left in the half to give UTD a 30-29 lead at the break.
 

UTD widened its lead to three points twice early in the second half before the Cowboys used an 8-0 run to grab a 39-34 lead with 15:46 and never let go. The Comets would go over five minutes without a field goal before Caleb Banks drained a three-pointer to draw UTD within six points, 44-38, with 12:27 remaining. However, HSU take its first double-digit lead with just under 10 minutes to play, 53-42, on a Justin Jones lay up, and would extended its lead to as many as 20 points late in the game.

Freshman Reagan Keogh led three Comets in double figures with 14 points along with a team-best six rebounds. Banks and Medell each finished with 13 points while Rafael Farley was held under 10 points for the first time this season, scoring just three points in 12 minutes.

The Comets finished the game shooting 42.6 percent (23-of-54) from the field, hitting 7-of-20 three-pointers (35%), and shot just 62.5 percent (10-of-16) from the free-throw line.

For Hardin-Simmons (20-6), Derrick Jefferson scored a game-high 21 points to lead four Cowboys in double figures. HSU shot 43.5 percent (27-of-62) from the field and hit just 4-of-32 three-pointers (17.4%). The Cowboys were 19-of-24 (79.2%) from the line and held a slim 36-33 rebounding edge over UTD.