Basketball Teams Shoot for Conference Championships

The UT Dallas men’s and women’s basketball teams will both be vying for conference championship titles this weekend, with the Comet men looking to earn top honors on their home court.

UT Dallas will host the American Southwest Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Friday through Sunday at the Activity Center.

Making their 10th straight trip to the postseason, the Comets open play Friday at 7:30 p.m., squaring off against Schreiner University. With a win, the Comets would advance to the semifinals at 4:30 p.m. Saturday with Sunday’s title game slated for 2 p.m.

Coach Terry Butterfield (above) and Coach Polly Thomason (below) will lead the men's and women's teams in the tournaments.

The Comet men enter the playoffs with a six-game winning streak and a 19-6 record. UT Dallas won the ASC title in 2005 and 2009, the latter on its home court. The Comets also hosted the event in 2011.

Admission to the tournament is free for all UT Dallas students, faculty and staff members with valid Comet Cards.

On the women’s side, the Comets are heading back to the ASC Women’s Basketball Tournament for the seventh consecutive season. UT Dallas has advanced to the league’s semifinals each of the past two seasons and will look to make it three in a row with a first-round win over Hardin-Simmons University at 5 p.m. Friday. With a win over HSU, the Comets would advance to a 4:30 p.m. Saturday semifinal contest. The ASC title game is slated for 2 p.m. Sunday. This year’s women’s tournament is hosted by Howard Payne University at the Brownwood Coliseum in Brownwood, Texas.

The Comet women (17-8) ended the regular season on a four-game winning streak and placed second in the ASC’s East Division. UT Dallas has finished second or better for six straight seasons.