The Tigers hammered right back Thursday back home in the friendly confines of Ornelas Gymnasium -- even doing the Comets one better.
ETBU (8-10, 8-8) shut down the Comets' 3-point shooting in the first half, holding UTD (8-12, 6-11) to only 28 percent from the field while rolling to a 41-16 lead at the break. From there, the Tigers cruised to their third straight win at home and their fifth straight win over the Comets in five years at Ornelas Gym.
The victory also snapped a two-game losing streak for the Tigers, a streak that started last Thursday with a 96-77 loss to UTD. It also gives ETBU a bit of breathing room in a crowded playoff race in the American Southwest Conference East Division.
Guard Cedric Isom led all scorers with 21 points and added 13 rebounds to go along with 7 assists, 1 block and 1 steal. He was joined in double figures by Rodney Calhoun, who scored 18 points off the bench, and surprise senior starter Ronnie Lewis, who hustled around for 12 points and 6 rebounds in 24 minutes.
UTD was led by 11 points from Martin Salinas and 10 from Jason Malone.
ETBU took a 10-4 lead five minutes into the game before going into lockdown mode on the Comets. ETBU outscored UTD 31-12 over the final 14 minutes of the first half to go into the locker room with a 25-point lead. UTD got to within 14 midway through the first half before the Tigers cruised to the 20-point win down the stretch.
The Comets hit only 6 3-pointers on the night compared to 13 in last week's win over the Tigers.
ETBU now leads UTD by 2 1/2 games in the conference standings, with six to play. Four of those games for ETBU will be played at home over the next eight days.
The top four teams in the ASC East will advance to the conference tournament later this month.