SAN ANTONIO – The 10th-ranked Tiger men's basketball team held on for a 76-73 overtime win at home against Texas Lutheran University in Saturday's Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference action.

Trinity improved to 18-1 overall and 9-1 in SCAC play with the win, while Texas Lutheran dropped to just 3-15 overall and 2-7 in conference this season. The win gives the Tigers a regular season series sweep of the Bulldogs after Trinity also won 70-60 on the road earlier this year.

Following a basket from Dean Balo (Dallas, Texas / JJ Pearce) that gave Trinity a three-point margin with 2:44 left in regulation, Texas Lutheran tied the game 69-69 with an and-one three-point play on the ensuing possession. Neither team scored over the final 2:33 of the second half as the defenses led the way down the stretch.

Trinity struck first in the five-minute overtime period, but Texas Lutheran drained a three-pointer with 3:19 remaining to take a 73-71 lead. That proved to be the final points of the night for the Bulldogs as the Tiger defense was once again on display. Balo scored on an and-one three-point play of his own with under a minute left to put the Tigers in front for good at 74-73. Jacob Harvey (Huffman, Texas / Hargrave) dropped in a pair of clutch free throws in the final seconds to seal the win for Trinity.

The win also ensured a proper celebration for a career milestone, as senior Tanner Brown (San Antonio, Texas / Brandeis) became the 28th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points. Brown finished the night with 15 total points on 6-of-9 shooting, as well as picking up five rebounds, four assists, and a career-high six steals.

Harvey finished with 14 points and five boards, sinking all six of his free throws for the game. Balo came off the bench with a career-high 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting overall to lead the team in scoring. Balo also connected on 3-for-6 from beyond the arc and went 4-for-5 at the charity stripe. Ty Williams (Pearland, Texas / Pearland) led the team with six rebounds to go with six points in just 10 minutes of action, while Zach Fenn (Covington, La. / Saint Paul's) had four steals, four rebounds, and four points scored in 17 minutes.

The Rundown

Both teams traded the lead early in the game, but Texas Lutheran made consecutive three-pointers to make it an 11-6 advantage for the visitors in the first five minutes of play. The Tigers soon had the game tied up at 13-13, but another long-range basket kept the Bulldogs in front heading towards the 11-minute mark of the first period. Trinity answered with a 10-0 run that was finished off by four points from Williams, and gave Trinity its largest lead to that point at 23-16 with under nine minutes to go. 

The back-and-forth battle continued as this time Texas Lutheran pieced together a 14-3 run to reclaim the momentum for a 30-26 lead with less than five minutes remaining before the half. Brown picked up his milestone points on the ensuing Trinity possession, driving the lane for a layup and drawing a foul to convert the and-one and bring the Tigers to within a point. Green followed with a bucket of his own to put Trinity in front briefly, but Texas Lutheran scored nine of the final 10 points of the half to take a 39-32 lead into the break.

Trinity could not get any closer than three points early in the second half as Texas Lutheran continued to make shots and avoid any momentum shifts. That is, until Harvey and Balo connected on consecutive three-pointers to tie the game 53-53 with 11:21 to play. Brown kept the charge going by scoring seven of Trinity's nine points during a 9-2 stretch that put the Tigers in front 62-56 with under eight minutes to go. 

The lead was still five points after Williams knocked down a pair of free throws with less than six minutes left, but Texas Lutheran battled back with consecutive buckets to pull within one point. That set up Balo's score and the ensuing three-point play from TLU to tie things up at 69-69. Trinity had its chances in the final two-plus minutes, but managed just one shot during that final stretch of regulation. While the Tigers forced the Bulldogs to miss their final eight shots (including a pair of blocks by Green), the home team also committed four turnovers in the final 1:25 of the second half to keep the game knotted and the teams scoreless.

Brown got the scoring started in overtime to put Trinity in front 71-69, but TLU scored the next four points to take a 73-71 lead with just over three minutes left. The two teams combined to miss their next five shots as the clock ticked under a minute. That's when Balo tied things up with his shot, but also drew a foul to put Trinity in front with the three-point play. The Bulldogs missed a go-ahead three on the next possession, but Trinity also missed its next shot. The Tigers got the offensive rebound on their miss, though, and Texas Lutheran had to foul Harvey to try and extend the game. Harvey scored both free throws, though, and Trinity held on for the win.

Coach Speak

"We had an awesome turnout tonight, so shout out to all the Trinity greats that came out for Alumni Night," said Assistant Coach Sterling Holmes. "We decided to give the alums five free minutes of hoops as well!"

Up Next

Trinity will begin a tough stretch to finish off the regular season next weekend, taking on Austin College and the University of Dallas on Friday and Saturday, January 26 and 27. The Tigers will play five of its final six games on the road to close out the SCAC schedule.