Jan. 23, 2008
Final Stats
ARLINGTON, Texas - - UT Arlington hadn't shot the ball well all night.
The Mavericks had trouble against a hot-shooting UTSA forward. And the home team couldn't extend a second-half lead when it looked like they were finally coming out of a shooting funk.
None of it mattered when UTA turned in a near-flawless final three minutes in a 56-50 victory Wednesday night in a Southland Conference game at Texas Hall. The victory is UTA's 17th consecutive at home - which extends a school record - its third consecutive victory in SLC action. After starting the league season 0-2, UTA seems to have righted the ship in front of the home crowd.
When the game ended, players climbed into the student section to high-five their blue-painted peers and off the end of the stage to celebrate with the band.
"It's just like it was last time out," UTA coach Scott Cross said. "When it got to the end of the game, the crowd got into it, and we pulled it out. The students were really loud, and that makes a big difference. It was a tough, hard-fought game. We won because of the people we have behind us at home."
UTA's final three minutes made the difference.
After a UTSA run that closed a 46-38 Mavericks advantage to 46-45 at the 3:33 mark, UTA sophomore point guard Cardell Hunter drove the lane and was fouled. He made both foul shots, and the Mavericks were up 48-45.
UTSA (8-9, 2-2 in the SLC), which got 15 points on five 3-pointers by JohnMark Ludwick, missed. UTA (13-4, 3-2) made sure there wasn't a second-chance basket when senior center Jermaine Griffin ripped down the rebound. A basket on UTA's next trip by Tommy Moffitt made it 50-45.
The Roadrunners next possession ended in a single miss when Moffitt pulled down the rebound.
Another foul on Hunter - and two more made free throws - put UTA back in control at 52-45 with 1:11 left.
With UTSA needing a basket to stay in the game, Griffin swatted down an attempt in the lane by Roadrunners point guard Devin Gibson.
Two more Hunter free throws put the game away. Hunter was 6-for-6 from the free-throw line down the stretch.
UTA had three players in double-figures, led by Rog'er Guignard's 13 points. Griffin, UTA's leading scorer, was held to two points but pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds. Hunter had 12 points, lifted by a 10-for-11 performance from the foul line Junior forward Anthony Vereen scored 10.
On a night when UTA didn't shoot well, its 38.1 percent effort from the field was overcome by 20-for-27 from the free-throw line. The Mavericks also won the battle on the boards, 36-34.
UTSA was hurt most by its 3-point shooting. Ludwick was 5-for-10, but the rest of the team combined to go 3-for-18.
Gibson led the Roadrunners with eight assists.
