Jesuit Dallas punched its second consecutive trip to the University Interscholastic League (UIL) Region II Tournament with a hard-fought, 71-67 win over Rockwall Heath on Wednesday, Feb. 28. The Rangers will head to Davis Field House on Friday to face state-ranked No. 4 Dekaney in the UIL Regional Semifinal at 6 p.m.
 
Junior Max Abmas scored 38 points for the Rangers, burying 5-of-8 three-pointers and converting 9-of-11 free throws to anchor the Jesuit scoring effort. Seniors Marcus Hill and Michael Jankovich added 15 points apiece, and classmate Joey Preboy led the team with 11 rebounds. Senior Reid Hatzmann logged six assists with seven points, helping achor a Jesuit unit that shot 45.1 percent from the floor and out-rebounded Heath, 31-27.
 
How it Happened
 

• Jesuit's defense shut down a Rockwall Heath guard contingent well known for its' three-point shooting ability, holding the Hawks to an 0-for-7 clip in the first half. Abmas led the way for the Rangers with nine first half points as Jesuit buried five three-pointers en route to securing a nine-point lead at the halftime break.
   
• Hill kicked off the second half with a four-point play, burying a three-pointer while getting fouled to spot Jesuit a 13-point lead. However, Heath began to heat up in the third quarter, opening the second half shooting 7-of-9 from the field to slice into the Rangers' lead.
   
• A layup by Preboy and a three-pointer from Hill increased Jesuit's lead to 13 points, but Heath erupted for a 9-0 run to cut the lead down to four points. Over a 90-second stretch, Heath buried a pair of three-pointers and converted three free throws to turn a four-possession game into a two-possession affair.
   
• Heath answered a 10-3 Jesuit Dallas run with a 9-3 run midway through the fourth quarter to cut the lead down to five points. After two free throws from Abmas, a layup and traditional three-point play cut the lead down to three. Abmas would be fouled two more times over the final minute of play, going 4-for-4 from the line to keep the two-possession lead and allowing the Rangers to clinch the win.

 
Inside the Box Score
 

• Jesuit forced 20 turnovers, scoring 13 points off of Heath miscues. The Rangers secured three steals, two from Jankovich and one from Hatzmann, while a dominant defense forced critical mistakes, including a lost ball out of bounds in the final seconds of the contest.
   
• The Rangers led from wire-to-wire, scoring their first basket 58 seconds into the first quarter and never allowing Heath to take the lead or tie the bout. Jesuit jumped out to a large lead, taking the first quarter 18-6 before slowing down with seven points in the second, but limited the Hawks to 7-of-21 first half shooting to send the contest into the break holding a 25-16 lead.
   
• After going 0-for-2 in the first half from the free throw line, Jesuit went 13-of-18 from the charity stripe in the second half.
   
• The Rangers will enter the regional semifinal on an eight-game winning streak, matching the team's season-opening streak that lasted from the season opener against Harker Heights (Nov. 10) to the championship game of the Knights of Columbus Dallas Classic against St. Ignatius (Dec. 2).

 
Up Next
 
The Rangers and Wildcats will square off in the first of two regional semifinal contests. The winner of Friday's bout will take on either South Garland or Eisenhower H.S. (Houston) on Saturday afternoon for the UIL Region 2-6A Championship and a state tournament berth.