RICHARDSON, TX (01.04.16) - After leading by as many as 14 points late in the first half, it was the No. 22-ranked UT Dallas women's basketball team that needed to rally in the final seconds to earn a 72-69 victory over Sul Ross State Monday afternoon in American Southwest Conference play.

The Comets (now 8-2, 2-1 ASC) rebounded from their first home loss of the season, but needed final-minute heroics to accomplish the task. Madison Steele hit a jumper with  :13 left that brought UTD from a one-point deficit, then Nicolette Erkman sank a pair of free throws with :05 remaining following a SRSU turnover to push the lead to three. Micaela Gonzalez grabbed the rebound on the final Lady Lobos (3-10, 0-4 ASC) shot to seal the victory.

UTD led the Lady Lobos, 51-48, heading into the final frame, but watched the lead fade early in the period as SRSU eventually snagged their first lead of the second half with 5:20 to play, 58-57, on a Ashley Minjarez three-pointer. The Lady Lobos extended their lead to four points, 65-61, with just over four minutes to play before the host Comets rallied for the victory. After two free throws each from Micaela Gonzalez and Alyssa Crockett, the Comets knotted the game, 65-65, with 3:17 remaining. SRSU regained a two-point lead nearly two minutes later before Crockett gave the Comets back the lead, 68-67, on a driving lay up with 30 seconds on the clock. The Lady Lobos answered with a jumper by Ashley Ousley on their next possession, however, giving SRSU back a slim one-point advantage. 

Gonzalez recorded her fifth "double-double" of the young season with 14 points and 13 rebounds, both teams highs for the Comets. She was 5-for-7 from the field and 4-of-6 from the line as she added three steals and a pair of blocked shots. Crockett came off the bench for 13 points, going 9-of-10 from the free-throw line.Erkman and Steele each finished with eight points.

The Comets shot just 33.9 percent (21-of-62) as a team, hitting just 4-of-18 three-pointers (22.2%), and were 26-of-34 (76.5%) from the line. UTD shot just 26.7 percent (8-of-30) as a team in the second half after leading the Lady Lobos, 38-32 at the break.

For SRSU, Mia Ochoa came off the bench for a game-high 16 points while Kenya Miles added 15 points and 11 rebounds. Shannon Villanueva rounded out the Lady Lobos in double figures with 13 points. Minjarez finished with nine points and a game-high nine assists. The Lady Lobos shot 48.9 percent (23-of-47) as a team, hitting 10-of-16 three-pointers (62.5%), and were 13-of-16 (81.3%) from the free-throw line.

The Comets return to action Thursday as they visit Hardin-Simmons in ASC play. Game time is 5:30 p.m. in Abilene.