Led by a near-double double by junior Jacob Palisch, the Ranger frontcourt contingent stood tall in a 71-58 win over Clayton Valley in the third place game of the 2015 Chris Vontoure Spartan Classic on Saturday afternoon at De La Salle High School.

Jesuit Dallas (8-3) out-rebounded Clayton Valley, 39-24, dominating the paint with 32 points in-between the free-throw lanes.  Palisch finished the contest with an individual season- and team-high 15 points, shooting 6-of-9 from the floor, and adding nine rebounds, including five of Jesuit's 16 offensive rebounds. 

In total, four Rangers scored in double digits, including All-Tournament selection Ben Kunasek.  The senior had another strong all-around performance, finishing with 10 points, including a pair of three-pointers, and a team-leading six assists, tying his season-high and the highest single game total this season for the Rangers.  Sophomore Michael Jankovich also earned All-Tournament team honors; scoring 24 points in the opening round win over St. Patrick/St. Vincent.

Senior Rusty Landon buried a pair of three-pointers and shot 4-of-6 from the floor, finishing with 12 points, three boards, an assist and a steal.  Junior Mitch Prendergast added 11 points and seven rebounds while sophomore Reid Hatzmann netted nine points and dragged down three boards.  Sophomore Keagan Nwosu added five rebounds and a block on an Eagles' three-point shot.

Jesuit Dallas shot 5-of-6 from the field to start the game, but the Eagles matched the Rangers' efficiency, resulting in a 13-13 tie with 4:47 remaining in the first quarter.  The Rangers used a 7-0 run, capped by a three-pointer by Hatzmann and a layup by senior Shawn Regan, to take a five-point lead with 2:21 left, but the Eagles took the lead right back with three-pointers to end the first and start the second, leading for the final time with 7:24 left in the second quarter.

The Rangers out-scored the Eagles, 17-7, over the next five minutes, using their overwhelming post presence to take five trips to the free-throw line on shooting fouls, converting 9-of-10 attempts.  Nwosu converted a pair of free-throws with three seconds remaining in the second, helping the Rangers finish the first half 13-of-14 from the free-throw line to enter the break leading, 39-32.

A three-pointer and layup by Landon along with a Kunasek jumper pushed the Ranger lead to 11, part of a 9-2 third-quarter opening run for the Blue and Gold.  However, Clayton Valley used a 12-2 run spanning the end of the third and the opening of the fourth to whittle the Ranger lead to 56-50 with 7:09 remaining in regulation.

The Rangers would close the door on the Eagles with just over five minutes remaining in the fourth.  Back-to-back buckets by Palisch were followed by a breakaway layup by Prendergast, awarding Jesuit an eight-point lead with 4:35 remaining. 

Jesuit Dallas then utilized an Eagles turnover and held onto the ball for 78 consecutive seconds, snagging three offensive rebounds on a single possession before Palisch scored another layup, spotting the Rangers a 10-point lead with just over three minutes remaining. 

The Ranger defense locked down on Clayton Valley down the stretch, holding the Eagles to 2-of-7 from the field and 0-for-5 from three-point range over the final five minutes of the game en route to the victory.

Jesuit Dallas will next break for assessments before taking on Cedar Hill at 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 21.