RICHARDSON, TX (01.12.19) - The UT Dallas men's basketball team got off to a strong start but had to hold off a talented LeTourneau squad in an 89-86 Comet victory Saturday afternoon in American Southwest Conference East Division play.

The Comets (12-3, 6-2 ASC) extended their winning streak to a season-long five games and snapped a five-game losing streak to the reigning ASC East champion YellowJackets, dating back to the 2015-16  campaign. UTD will look for a sixth win in a row Thursday night when the Comets return to the road for a game at rival Texas-Tyler. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m. in Tyler.

Dimitrius Underwood used back-to-back steals and break-away dunks to lift the Comets to an early 18-5 lead on LETU, forcing a second early YellowJacket timeout less than seven minutes into the opening half. UTD extended its lead to 19 points just past the midway point in the period, but would only take a 10-point cushion, 48-38, into the locker room. The Comets shot 50 percent (20-of-40) as a team in the first 20 minute, tallying 15 points off of eight LETU turnovers. Just two days after setting a program record for three-pointers made in a game, the Comets would only take three long shots in the opening half, hitting one, as they scored 26 points int he paint before the break.

The YellowJackets (9-6, 5-3 ASC) clawed within four points just more than a minute into the second half after a couple lay ups by Caleb Loggins, but UTD responded and returned its lead to double figures, 68-57, with 12 minutes left after a Jalen Weber jumper. The Comets kept LETU at bay for most of the second half until the final minutes of the contest when Nate West, the ASC's leading scorer, drained a three-pointer with 51 seconds left and then added a shorter jumper two possessions later to cut the UTD lead down to two points, 85-83, with 17 seconds remaining.

After two Weber free throws that gave the Comets back a four-point cushion, West hit his fifth three-pointer of the game to make it a one-point game, 87-86, with six ticks left. A quick foul on the inbounds pass put Underwood to the line as the three-time ASC East Player of the Week hit both free shots to secure the victory. LETU's failed to get the ball past mid-court after the free throws.

Weber paced the Comets with 27 points, going 11-of-26 from the field, while Underwood added 25 points along with eight rebounds and four steals. Hans Burwitz added 17 points and a game-high 11 rebounds sixth 'double-double' of the season. UTD finished the win shooting an even 50 percent (35-for-70) from the field and hit just 1-of-7 three-pointers (14.3%). The Comets were 18-of-26 (69.2%) from the free-throw line.

West scored 19 of his game-high 27 points in the second half, hitting 5-of-10 three-pointers, while Loggins added 21 points.