March 18, 2008

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ARLINGTON, Texas - - UT Arlington officials have announced that a 9:30 a.m. send-off event is scheduled for Wednesday at Maverick Stadium, shortly before the men's basketball team loads the bus for Little Rock, Ark.

Maverick players and coach Scott Cross will be in attendance, and fans can win prizes while wishing UTA good luck in the first round.

UTA (21-11), making its first NCAA Tournament appearance, will play top-seeded and second-ranked Memphis (31-1) at approximately 9 p.m. Friday in the South Region matchup at the AllTel Center. UTA remained on an emotional high yesterday, participating in a reception at the University Club and being honored later Tuesday night by the Arlington City Council.

"The attention we're getting locally and nationally is just unbelievable, and I'm so happy we could help bring this kind of positive publicity for the university," Cross said. "I know we're big underdogs in this game, but I can promise that our guys will work as hard as they possibly can and represent UTA to the best of their ability."

A second event is being scheduled for Friday at the Hilton Hotel in Little Rock for Maverick fans who make the trip to the game. Details are still being finalized, but a 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. reception has been tentatively planned.

The early start for that event is so college basketball fans can see the first game of the night - the South Region matchup between Oregon and Mississippi State. UTA plays 30 minutes after that game.

"We have some extremely loyal fans, and I have no doubt that the fans we have at the game on Friday are going to be extremely loud for us," Cross said.