Box Score

RICHARDSON, TX  – Undermanned, against the ropes, and in front of a large, boisterous UTD Activity Center crowd, the No. 19 Comets found a way to win—again—in the game’s waning moments.

This time it was in the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament. This time it sent them back to the Sweet Sixteen for the second straight year.

UT Dallas, playing catch-up for most Saturday’s contest, squeezed out a 63-62 win over Wheaton College (19-9) in a second round nail-biter, where Jordan Eppink’s jumper with six seconds remaining lifted the Comets (24-5) to their fourth last-chance win of the season.

“We have great kids with a whole lot of heart,” said UTD coach Terry Butterfield. “They find ways to get things done. You only want kids like these. They’re the best.”

Last year, UTD’s NCAA voyage ended on a sour note by frittering away a 12-point lead to Guilford in an Elite Eight showdown. Guildford edged the Comets in overtime.

On Saturday, UTD utilized just seven players, never rested Jared Fleming or Chris Barnes, and came back from a nine-point deficit midway through the first half to improve its all-time record in the “Big Dance” to 3-2.

And the Comets did it all without their emotional sparkplug and leading rebounder, Jimmy Witten, who suffered a season ending knee injury in UTD’s 80-70 loss to Mary Hardin-Baylor in the American Southwest Conference Championship last Sunday.

“When that happened, it gave us a little jolt,” Eppink said of Witten’s injury. “What was harder than losing the (ASC) championship was watching him go down.”

Inbounding from mid-court with 12 seconds left, the Comets isolated Eppink at the right shoulder against Wheaton’s Tim McCrary. Eppink received the pass from Fleming, squared up, and thought about feeding Curtis Davis, who sliced through the lane.

The pass never came.

Instead, Eppink spun once, twice, then floated in the game-winning shot. The Thunder would have one more opportunity from halfcourt, but Davis intercepted the inbounds pass and sprinted down the right sideline until the time ran out.

Eppink’s bucket was not only a monumental one for the team—it signified his 1,000th career point.

“I’m not going to lie—what was going through my head was ‘998 points,’” said Eppink. “I’m not going out on 998. That was going through my head at that point.”

Barnes led all UTD scorers with 14 points, Scott Rodgers pitched in 12, and Fleming, who drilled two crucial 3s in the second half, added 11. Davis and Eppink each finished with 10 points.

Wheaton leapt out to a 62-61 edge with 37 ticks remaining as guard Ben Panner, an Austin, TX, native, connected on a fadeaway over Rodgers. UTD quickly called a timeout, and absorbed 31 seconds on the clock before Eppink’s heroics.

The Comets shot 52 percent after recess and in doing so, compiled a 47-42 lead after a Rodgers lay-in. UTD’s largest lead was 58-52 after Fleming hoisted a deep 3-pointer that rattled in with the game clock reading 4:06.

Clearly, in front of a home crowd of 996, the Comets had all the momentum on their side after a mediocre first half.

“We’ve never, in my ten years, have seen a crowd like that. It’s always been a dream of mine to see a crowd like that,” said Butterfield. “To see the enthusiasm that they brought—we might have not been able to (win) without them.”

UTD, a team that claimed exhilarating last-second wins over UT-Tyler, Ozarks and Mississippi College down the final stretch of the season, took just 11 long balls throughout the evening. On average, the Comets attempt 26 per game.

Wheaton was led by Panner’s 15 points. John Shackelford pumped in 15 more—all of which came from beyond the arc—while McCrary and Andrew Jahns contributed 11 and 10, respectively.

The Comets, winners of 17 of their last 19, will now face off with UW-Stevens Point in a sectional contest next weekend. Stevens Point (25-4) knocked off St. Norbert in the second round on Saturday. Next weekend’s host institution is yet to be determined.