DALLAS – It is tournament time and University of North Texas at Dallas men's basketball punched its ticket to the Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC) on Monday after defeating John Brown University, 60-54. The Trailblazers earned the eighth and final seed of the tournament and play at No. 1 seed Nelson University this Thursday at 7:00 p.m.
 
FAN LINKS
Live stats
Video (Nelson University Sports Network)
Tickets
SAC Championship Page
SAC Bracket
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date: 2/27/2025
Time: 7:00 PM
Where: Waxahachie, Texas (Sheaffer Center)
 
MAKING THE TOURNAMENT
The Trailblazers grinded to the last spot in the SAC Tournament with a 60-54 victory against John Brown. After building a 34-18 halftime lead, the Trailblazers fended off many rallies by the Golden Eagles, which included a late three-point margin. Junior Daniel Sohn Aledo, Texas) scored the last three points, including an exclamation dunk to propel his team in the must-win game. It was the first time UNTD won consecutive home games all season and ended its first year at Ellis Davis Field House with a 5-6 record. The Trailblazers also handled business by defeating College of the Ozarks and celebrating a successful Senior Day. The win improves the Trailblazers to 13-14 overall and 10-14 against the SAC. Both win totals signify a program-most in each.
 
ACTIVE PLAYERS
Roster:
#0) Ashton Howard, Senior, Forward, 6'8" (Cedar Hill, Texas)
#1) Demaryon Thornton, Senior, Guard, 6'2" (Chicago, Ill.)
#2) Joe Davis, Senior, Guard, 5'11" (Danville, Va.)
#3) Vernon Johnson, Senior, Guard, 6'3" (DeSoto, Texas)
#5) Jayden Johnson-Blair, Senior, Guard, 6'0" (Dallas, Texas)
#24) Greg Crawford, Junior, Guard/Forward, 6'5" (Houston, Texas)
#33) Daniel Sohn, Junior, Forward, 6'7" (Aledo, Texas)
#35) Dante Curry-El, Sophomore, Guard, 6'2" (Charlottesville, Va.)
$40) Sergio McClain, Junior, Forward, 6'5" (Peoria, Ill.)
#41) Grant Ekakitie, Sophomore, Forward, 6'9" (Duncanville, Texas)
 
2024-25 Trailblazers Roster
 
NOTABLES
- Crawford leads the team in scoring with 481 points and is averaging 17.8 points-per-game. His 268 rebounds and 9.8 per contest lead the conference. Crawford is the first player in the program to register double figures in scoring all 27 games. He has 18 double-doubles. Crawford also has made 153 free throws, which is also a league-high and program-most.
- Johnson is the top player in the conference for steals with 55 and averaging 2.0 a contest. Johnson is the veteran presence in his final year. He ranks second on the team in scoring (267 pts.), rebounding (114), and assists (74).
- Johnson-Blair just matched his single-game record for assists a third time overall and second this season with nine. He has achieved the feat against John Brown (2/24/25), Texas Wesleyan (1/6/25), and Oklahoma Panhandle State (2/24/24).
- Howard leads the league in blocks with 53 and builds on his season and career records with the program.
- Thornton has drained at least a trio of three-pointers in the past four games. In 13 games, he has made 20 trifectas and is within 10 of the top spot, which are two players that have played all 27 games in Johnson and Johnson-Blair.
- Sohn is having a career year in scoring, ranked third on the team with 245 points and averaging 9.8 a contest.
- The Trailblazers are averaging 70.8 points, while allowing opponents a 70.4-clip.
- The team leads the SAC in steals with 106 and averaging 3.9 per game.
 
2024-25 UNTD Season Stats
 
PREVIEWING NELSON
- Nelson enters with a 21-7 record overall and 19-5 SAC record for the Regular Season Championship Title. It is the Lion's first since 2020-21.
- The Lions enter the tournament ranked No. 24 with 116 votes in the latest NAIA National Poll.
- Nelson is an impressive 13-1 at home.
- The Lions have won three in a row, all at the friendly confines. They defeated College of the Ozarks on Monday, 90-75, to head into the tournament feeling confident.
- CJ Hall leads this top scoring offense in the conference with 518 points and averages 19.2 points-per-game. Hall scored 1,000 points for his career last time out.
- JJ Boling and Justin Collins are also scorers to watch with 243 and 214 points, respectively.
- Nine players have eclipsed triple-digits in the points column.
 
Nelson Season Stats
 
HISTORY
- Nelson won both meetings this regular season with a 78-74 final at Ellis Davis Field House in December and 94-79 final at Sheaffer Center about a month ago.
- UNTD allowed Nelson to sink 15 three-pointers. This included 10 in the first half.
- Hall had 25 points in that win, while Micah Clark added 20.
- Crawford had 15 points, Johnson 14, and Sohn 13 with a team-high eight rebounds. Johnson-Blair tallied 10 points and dished seven assists.
- In the first meeting, Crawford had 17 points and 12 boards for a double-double. Sohn added 16 points, while Johnson added 13 and Howard had 11 off the bench.
- Hall scored 23 points in the first meeting.
- UNTD is 1-7 in the All-Time Series.
- This includes an 0-4 record in at Sheaffer Center and all margins have been by at least 10.
 
- UNT Dallas makes its second SAC Tournament appearance.
- The Trailblazers were defeated at Mid-America Christian, 83-72.
- Johnson and Thornton are current players that appeared in that game.
- Johnson notched a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
 
WIN AND MOVE ON
The winner of this round will advance to the semifinals and play the winner of No. 4 Wayland Baptist and No. 5 John Brown. The game will be at host site Langston and begin at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, March 3.