DALLAS — In a matchup of two of the teams at the top of the Heartland Conference standings, the Newman men's basketball team fell to a late charge from No. 17/25 Dallas Baptist Saturday afternoon.
KEY SEQUENCE
While they trailed for a nearly 20-minute stretch of gametime, the Jets (8-10, 4-3 Heartland) got a huge momentum swing from Cameron Goldfinch, who netted eight points in 73 seconds to push Newman ahead by two at the midway point of the second half. The Patriots (15-3, 5-2 Heartland) got on their own hot streak a couple minutes later though, putting together an 8-0 run to go ahead by six at 69-63 with 7:39 to play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
-A Christian DeYoung 3-pointer two minutes in put the Jets in front, a lead they would hold for over four minutes until DBU tied it at 10-10. Dametrius Walker put his team back in front with a jumper, but a 6-0 spurt from the Patriots put them up by four. Later, a three-point play by Walker made it 20-17 with 10:15 left in the opening half, but the hosts answered with a 10-0 run over the next two minutes.
-While the Jets chipped away at the lead with a bucket and two 3-pointers from Walker and free throws from the rest of the cast, DBU would push its lead out to double digits at 44-34 with less than two minutes left in the half. Another trey from DeYoung helped cut into the deficit before the break, but the Patriots made it a 10-point lead once again three minutes into the second half.
-Six combined free throws from Damien Akao, Kevin Bryant and Andre Sands were capped with an Akao 3-pointer to end a 9-0 run and make it a one-point game at 48-47 less than five minutes into the second. DBU responded, but the Jets kept it within seven until Goldfinch came off the bench to propel the team back into the lead.
-Newman didn't go away quietly after the hosts sprung back in front, with Walker and Sands adding buckets and Ben Ayre hitting a pair of free throws to keep things interesting. Ayre's freebies made it 77-72 with 2:56 to play, but DBU made its free throws down the stretch to start pulling away.
NOTES
-The loss knocked the Jets out of a tie for first place in the Heartland standings, but they're still right in the middle of what's shaping up to be a tight finish. Seven games into the league slate, the top eight teams are all within two games of each other.
-Walker didn't have much trouble finding the bottom of the net, as the junior finished with a team-high 20 points on a slick 8-of-11 shooting.
-Bryant nearly notched his fourth double-double in his past six games, finishing with nine points and 11 boards. He did extend his streak of double-digit rebound games to six.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Jets turn around from the quick road trip for three straight home games, beginning Thursday against Lubbock Christian.
