Austin Holds Off Dallas Surge

The Austin Machines needed every bit of a +20 performance from their interior anchor to survive Saturday night, pulling away late for a 109-105 decision over the Dallas Pythons. The Machines' top big delivered 25 points on 7-of-11 shooting with 11 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 9-of-10 free throws in under 22 minutes of work, finishing with a 23.3 game score that papered over some genuine stress in the final minutes.

The Pythons would not go away. DuFlocka Rant finished with 28 points on 9-of-15 from the field, adding three triples and a 7-of-9 mark from the stripe across 33-plus minutes. He kept Dallas within a possession for long stretches in the second half, and the Pythons got as close as two in the final two minutes before Austin's free-throw execution sealed it. Rant's -7 plus-minus tells the story of a guy who poured everything in and still ended up on the losing side.

White Mamba was the connective tissue Austin needed. The point guard finished with 13 points, 9 assists, and 3 steals on 31 minutes, and his 4-of-10 shooting masked how much he controlled the pace on both ends. When Dallas tried to speed the game up to manufacture a comeback, Mamba's ball security, just one turnover, kept the Machines from cracking. Buu added 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting off the bench in under 19 minutes, giving Austin a second burst scorer who never let the lead shrink to dangerous territory until the very end.

Dallas got a combined 40 points and five made threes from Rant and a second contributor who shot 7-of-11 for 20 points, but three turnovers from that player at the wrong moments gave Austin extra possessions when they needed breathing room. The Pythons were good enough to make this uncomfortable; they were not quite good enough to finish it.

Austin improves with this result and will look to carry the momentum forward. Dallas, which had the firepower to win this one, will need its supporting pieces to clean up the late-game execution if they want to steal one on the road next time out.