Jesuit Dallas split the final day of the 2018 Whataburger Invitational, upending No. 10 J.J. Pearce, 64-50 before dropping an 80-76 decision to No. 2 (5A) Justin Northwest in the Consolation Championship Game on Dec. 29 in Haltom City, Texas.
 
Against Pearce, sophomore Gavin Perryman shot 6-of-9 and 4-of-5 from three-point range to secure 20 points. Senior Julius Marble added 15 points while classmate Anthony Hollerich tacked on a team-leading nine rebounds. Senior Max Abmas scored eight points with a team-leading six assists while junior Darryl Brown added six points. The Ranger defense held Pearce to 2-of-15 shooting from outside the arc, including a 0-for-7 clip in the second half while shooting 23-of-49 from the floor for a 47.9% conversion rate.
 
Jesuit Dallas outscored Pearce by nine points in the first quarter before a two-point swing by the Mustangs sent the two teams into halftime with Jesuit holding a 34-27 lead. Jesuit's defense locked down on Pearce in the third quarter, holding the Mustangs to only eight points in the stanza while taking a 13-point lead heading into the fourth. The Rangers closed out the bout with 16 points in the fourth while completing a dominant second half by holding Pearce to only 23 points in the second stanza.
 
Abmas led the charge against Northwest with 28 points alongside 16 points from Perryman and 14 points from Marble, who additionally secured a team-leading six rebounds. Marble joined seniors Anthony Hollerich and Connor Wilson with three assists while the Rangers shot 24-of-48 from the field and 16-of-30 from three-point range, tacking on 10 points off of seven Northwest turnovers.
 
Jesuit used an 8-2 run in the late stages of the first quarter to take a seven-point lead with 1:18 remaining in the opening stanza. Northwest closed the gap to one possession throughout the second quarter, hitting a three-pointer at the buzzer to tie the contest, 37-37 heading into the halftime break. Abmas and Hollerich hit three-pointers out of the gate in the third quarter to put the Rangers up by four points before a four-point play from Abmas gave the Rangers a nine-point lead with 3:47 remaining in the third.
 
The Northwest rally began with a six-point swing after Abmas' four-point run as the Texans used an 8-2 run to close the gap to two points. Marble beat the buzzer to send Jesuit into the fourth up by five points. Northwest held Jesuit to three made field goals before taking the lead with 2:05 remaining on a traditional three-point play.
 
During a critical stretch of the game, Jesuit was held without a field goal over a four-minute stretch while the Texans earned a two-possession lead. Abmas hit a three-pointer with nine seconds left to slice the lead to two points, but Jesuit was unable to force the potential game-tying turnover prior to the final horn.
 
Jesuit will return to district play on Wednesday, Jan. 2 against reigning national champion Allen. The Rangers captured a district-opening win on Dec. 21, when the Blue and Gold defeated Prosper on Dec. 21. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. from the Lowery Freshman Center in Allen, Texas.