IRVING, Texas – A trio of Jacob Hester three-pointers in the final 4:08 propelled the Southwestern University men's basketball team to a 62-58 victory at the University of Dallas.
Hester, a 5-foot-11 junior guard from Leander, Texas, led all scorers with 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting from the field including 4-for-9 from long range as well as 3-for-5 from the charity stripe.
With a 52-51 lead, Hester made a three-pointer to put the Pirates (3-5, 1-1 SCAC) up 55-51 with 4:08 left in the game.
Dallas (2-5, 0-2 SCAC) answered with a remarkable four-point play 25 seconds later when Zac Olmsted made a three-pointer and was fouled on the play by Hester. Olmsted converted the free throw to tie the game up at 55-55.
In an act of redemption for committing the foul on the three-point shooter, Hester brushed the negative off and turned it into a positive for himself and the rest of the Pirates by knocking down a trey the next possession down the court.
Hester then put the Pirates up by six on a third three-pointer in the game's final minutes to put Southwestern on top 61-55.
Dallas later cut its deficit down to 61-58 with three free throws inside the final two minute, but Hester made one of his own putting the final death nail in the coffin for the final 62-58 margin.
The Crusaders looked like they were going to run away with the game in the first 10:05 after having built a 21-10 lead, but Dallas got cold while Southwestern got hot.
With 9:55 left in the first quarter and Dallas going up 21-10 on an Olmstead three-pointer, the Pirates would then decide to steer the bow of the ship in a different direction and eventually taking a 23-21 lead on a Sam Lacy layup with 6:35 left in the first half.
Hester added a layup of his own less than a minute later to continue the scoring barrage as the Crusaders were held without points for 6:14 of game action until Jacob Giunta made a pair of free throws with 3:41 left in the opening stanza.
Southwestern would eventually lead by as many as five in the first half when Josh Jones 3-pointer put the Pirates up 31-26 with 1:35 left before halftime.
Neither team was able to pull away from the other during the entirety of the second half with leads of no more than a few points at any given time until Hester's late-game heroics gave Southwestern the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference victory.
Outside of Hester, Lacy had a stellar night as well going for the first double-double of his career with 10 points and 10 rebounds to go along with six assists and three steals.
Four of the Dallas starters scored in double figures as the Crusaders got no help from the bench after Southwestern's substitutes outscored their counter\parts 18-0.
UP NEXT
The Pirates will have a little bit time before they welcome in the Gents of Centenary College (La.) on Friday, Dec. 16 to open the home portion of the SCAC schedule. Tipoff between Southwestern and Centenary is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CST.