Senior Mitch Prendergast logged his second consecutive 20-point game, lifting Jesuit to a narrow 69-67 win over Frisco Heritage in the first round of the 2016 Knights of Columbus Bob Stras Dallas Classic Tournament on Thursday at Walsh Gym.
 
Prendergast shot 8-of-16 from the floor and 4-of-7 from three, following a career-high 29 points on Tuesday against Plano East with another team-high scoring performance. Sophomore Max Abmas scored 14 points, his second-highest total of the season, adding a season-high five rebounds. Senior Michael Jankovich hit a pair of three-pointers, adding 12 points to the Jesuit effort while dragging down a team-leading eight boards. The Rangers (6-2) scored 26 points in the paint, and posted 19 points off of 16 Heritage turnovers.
 
Jesuit shot 4-for-5 in the first to take an early 16-11 advantage at the end of the quarter. A 10-4 run in the second quarter was capped by a three-pointer by Jankovich, which gave the Rangers a 32-21 lead with 3:17 remaining in the half. Heritage ended the half on an 11-7 run, hitting a pair of free throws in the waning moments of the second to send Jesuit into the break with a 39-32 lead.
 
The Rangers again built a double-digit lead in the third, but Heritage began a comeback bid with 4:51 left in the quarter, using a 12-4 run to slim the Jesuit advantage to four. Jesuit responded with seven unanswered points, but the Coyotes answered with another big run, outscoring the Rangers 12-6 over a seven-minute span in the fourth to close the gap to 66-61 with 57 seconds left.  Prendergast hit three of his four free throws over the final minute, and a late push by Heritage fell short, sending Jesuit to the semifinal.
 
On Friday, December 2, the Rangers will battle Waco Midway in the final game of the tournament's second day. Midway upset Texas Association of Basketball Coaches (TABC) state-ranked No. 8 Amarillo Tascosa, 64-62, on Thursday to advance to the championship semifinals.