A career performance from Julius Marble and the Rangers' second double-digit comeback in as many days led the Blue and Gold to a 71-61 win over Arlington Martin on Friday afternoon at the 61st Annual Whataburger Tournament. The Rangers will advance to the semifinals of the consolation bracket and are set for an 11 a.m. clash against J.J. Pearce on Saturday morning.
 
Marble finished Friday's contest with a career-high 31 points, shooting 11-of-15 shots from the floor while burying a trio of three-pointers alongside a 6-of-6 clip from the free-throw line. Marble tacked on a team-leading eight rebounds and blocked two shots. Marble's 31-point outing matches Jesuit's highest single-game scoring performance over the past three seasons, matching 31-point outings by Marcus Hill against Highland Park (Nov. 24, 2015) and a point total recorded by Max Abmas against Rockwall-Heath (Dec. 27, 2017) and J.J. Pearce (Jan. 26, 2018)
 
Senior Max Abmas added 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting while classmate Anthony Hollerich scored four points while adding a team-high four assists. Sophomore Gavin Perryman contributed eight points and senior Connor Wilson buried a pair of three-pointers to finish the bout with six points.
 
Jesuit gathered a convincing advantage in the paint, out-scoring the Warriors, 36-18 between the lanes. The Ranger defense limited Martin to a 29.6 percent clip in the second half to shake off an 11-point halftime deficit, scoring 19 points off of 15 Martin turnovers.
 
Martin took a 10-point lead with 34 seconds remaining in the first quarter before working its way to an 11-point halftime lead after holding Jesuit to 3-of-12 behind the arc in the opening half, forcing seven turnovers and out-rebounding Jesuit, 18-10.
 
Marble opened the third quarter with a three-point play, sparking a game-changing, 25-2 run which turned an 11-point deficit into a 12-point lead with 1:13 remaining in the third. The run included a massive inbound dunk by Marble on a feed from Abmas, which resulted in a three-point play when Marble was fouled on the way up for the basket. In total, the Rangers hit five three-pointers in the third quarter and took a 10-point advantage into the fourth.
 
A three-point play by Abmas kept the pressure on Martin, who was able to cut the Jesuit lead to seven oints with 3:05 remaining but could not close the gap brought forth by the momentous second half. The Rangers went 4-for-4 down the stretch from the free-throw line to clinch the win.
 
Jesuit will return to the Whataburger Tournament on Saturday for an 11 a.m. matchup against former district opponent J.J. Pearce. The matchup will feature a pair of state-ranked teams, No. 3-6A Pearce and No. 4-6A Jesuit, clashing for a spot in the consolation championship against either Southlake Carroll or No. 4-5A Justin Northwest. If Jesuit defeats Pearce, the Rangers will advance to the consolation championship at 5 p.m. on Wednesday.
 
All Saturday contests will be streamed live, without commentary, on JesuitRangers.org.