RICHARDSON, Texas - The UT Dallas men's basketball team defeated McMurry for the second time this season, winning 80-73 at the UTD Activity Center Thursday night.

With the win, the Comets (13-7, 9-2 American Southwest Conference), moves into a tie with Hardin-Simmons for first place in the league. Those teams will battle for the conference lead on Saturday at home at 3 p.m.

The War Hawks (9-11, 3-8 ASC) and Comets were evenly matched throughout the first half, with the visitors from Abilene taking a 37-36 lead into the break.

UTD opened up the second period on an 11-4 run to go up by six and the teams stayed close throughout the rest of the game. Tied at 66-66 with 4:41 remaining, the Comets took the lead for good with a pair of free throws by freshman Franklin Onyeme 50 seconds later. The home team ended the game outscoring the War Hawks 14-7 for the seven-point win.

The Comets shot 42.6 percent (29-for-68) from the field, 4-for-18 from outside and 18-for-25 at the line. They also recorded 48 rebounds, 23 assists, 18 turnovers, two blocks and nine steals.

The War Hawks shot 38.8 percent (26-of-67) overall, 6-for-30 from three-point range and 15-of-25 at the free throw line with 40 rebounds, 21 assists, 19 turnovers, nine blocks and 11 steals.

UT Dallas Notes
- The Comets improved to 18-8 all-time against the War Hawks.
- Senior guard Donovan Souter dropped a career-best 33 points to go with six rebounds. He made four three-pointers and now has scored in double-digits in 19 consecutive games.
- Guard Luke Kiser was just shy of a triple-double, coming up with 11 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds. He tied his career-high of 12 helpers and has posted double-digit assists in three of the last four games.
- Sophomore Austin Page scored 14 points with six rebounds and two steals.
- Onyeme finished with a season-best 10 points, going 4-for-5 from the field.
- Junior forward Rob Wade recorded six points, five rebounds and two steals.
- Freshman Jordan Balderaz had four points, eight rebounds and two steals.
- Junior guard Thibaut Tagnon tied his career-high with six assists.

McMurry Notes
- Elias Garcia led the War Hawks with 18 points and nine rebounds.
- Tristan Holden recorded 13 points, six rebounds, five blocks and three steals.
- TJ Hilliard added 12 points and eight boards.
- CJ LeBlanc scored nine points and dished out four assists.
- Coco Rose came off the bench for seven points, eight assists, four rebounds and three steals.

Up Next
UTD will host Hardin-Simmons on Saturday at 3 p.m. with the winner taking sole possession of first place in the ASC.