JESUIT DALLAS VS. IRVING
Tues., Jan. 26, 2016 – 7:30 PM
Walsh Gymnasium
Live Broadcast (Nick Mersch '16 and Eddie Tomlin '16)
Live Stats
Sunset Highlights l Skyline Highlights
Weekly Outlook with Head Coach Chris Hill

Rangers Look to Rebound: Jesuit Dallas will return to Walsh Gymnasium on Tuesday, four days after suffering its first University Interscholastic League (UIL) loss of the season, 56-38, to the Texas state-ranked No. 12 Skyline Raiders.  This season, the Rangers are 5-0 following a loss, out-scoring opponents by an average of 13 points per game in the respective contests.  Most recently, Jesuit Dallas rebounded from an 85-83, overtime loss to Allen on Dec. 30 with a resounding, 82-45 win over Irving, the squad that the Blue and Gold will welcome to Walsh Gymnasium on Tuesday night.

Jesuit Starts District Round Two: Tuesday's game against Irving serves as the beginning of the second round of district competition, a cycle that will end in the regular season finale against Skyline on Feb. 16.  During the first run through District 9-6A, the Rangers owed their 6-1 record to a dominant offensive showing, including four wins of 20 points or more.  In total, the Blue and Gold won the rebounding battle six out of seven times, including out-rebounding the Raiders on Jan. 22 despite losing the final contest. 

One Quarter at a Time: Outscoring opponents by 11.3 points per game, the Blue and Gold has dominated three out of the four quarters in regulation by a wide margin, holding an over-50 point cumulative advantage in the first, second and fourth quarters.  The third quarter has been a closely contested portion of the game throughout the campaign, with the Rangers holding a slim, 330-322 advantage throughout the season.

Last Time Out Against Irving: Three members of the Jesuit Dallas sophomore class combined for 57 points, helping the Rangers cruise to an 82-45 win over Irving in the team's University Interscholastic League (UIL) District 9-6A opener at Tiger Gym on Saturday.  Sophomore Michael Jankovich stretched his double-digit scoring streak to five games, netting a team-leading 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting and six three-pointers.  Classmate Marcus Hill finished another impressive outing with four three-pointers and 22 points, while second year Reid Hatzmann finished the victory with 11 points, adding a pair of steals and four assists.  Senior Ben Kunasek logged a new season-high with eight assists while also leading the Rangers with three steals.

Last Time Out Against Nimitz: Jesuit Dallas held a determined Irving Nimitz squad at bay down the stretch of Tuesday's University Interscholastic League (UIL) bout, using an inspired fourth quarter to improve to 2-0 in District 9-6A with a 51-44 win over the Vikings at Nimitz High School.  Sophomores Michael Jankovich and Marcus Hill kept their impressive double-digit scoring streaks intact, with Hill scoring 15 points on 4-of-6 shooting from three-point range to increase his mark to seven consecutive games.  Jankovich picked up a team-leading 16 points to notch his sixth straight double-digit effort, adding five rebounds and a pair of assists.  Senior Rusty Landon played a key role in the fourth quarter for Jesuit Dallas, finishing with nine points, three boards, a team-high two steals and a pair of assists.  Junior Jacob Palisch and sophomore Reid Hatzmann tied for the team lead with seven rebounds, with Palisch snagging three offensive boards to help the Rangers score eight second chance points.

Catching Up with the Tigers: Currently 8-12 overall with a 2-5 mark in district competition, the Irving Tigers most recently dropped a 77-52 decision to MacArthur last Friday after falling, 67-14, to Skyline earlier in the week.  After losing to Jesuit on Jan. 2, the Tigers scored their first district win of the year, 64-44, against R.L. Turner, later defeating Sunset, 77-44.

Catching Up with the Vikings: Irving Nimitz enters the week on a two-game winning streak, upending Sunset, 76-42 on Friday after defeating R.L. Turner, 61-34, on Tuesday.  However, the Vikings have a tough challenge this week, traveling to face the district-leading Raiders of Skyline on Tuesday before arriving in Walsh Gymnasium for a week-ending district tilt.

On Deck: The Rangers will continue District Play next week with a Tuesday evening road battle against W.T. White at 8 p.m. on Feb. 2 before welcoming Irving MacArthur for an anticipated rematch of Jesuit's 64-61 win on Jan. 12 at Walsh Gymnasium.  The second regular season contest between the Rangers and Cardinals will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 5.