Jan. 22, 2011
Final Stats
Nacogdoches, Tex. - The UT Arlington men's basketball used a combination of outstanding defense and timely shooting from the field and the line to defeat Stephen F. Austin 62-52 Saturday.
The Mavericks came into the game after a great defensive effort in their previous game as they allowed only 49 points in a win earlier in the week against Texas A&M-Corpus Chirsti.
The same principles helped the Mavs once again as they won consecutive games for the first time since November and in doing so, held their opponents to only 50.5 points per game in the two wins.
"Our guys played tough on both ends of the floor tonight, but especially on the defensive end," UTA head coach Scott Cross said. "We have been working hard in practice and I knew we were getting better and we are starting to see the results.
LaMarcus Reed led the Mavericks with game-highs of 16 points and eight rebounds. The junior scored 12 of his points in the second half and his rebound total was a season-high.
The Mavericks, who are now 9-9 overall and 3-2 in the conference, led by five at halftime and quickly extended their lead after the break scoring the first five points of the second half. They led by as many as 12 in the second half and never led by less than six.
UTA held Stephen F. Austin to 32.3% from the field in the second half and to 37.5% for the game. The Mavericks had a hot first half at 60% from the field and finished the game at 48.8%.
The Mavericks helped themselves in the second half as they went 12-of-12 from the line with 10 of those coming in the final minutes. UTA finished the game making 14-of-16.
Bo Ingram added 14 points for UT Arlington, 10 of which came in the first half that helped the Mavs start to take control late in the first half.
The Mavs also welcomed back to the floor a healthy Darius Richardson who had missed basically the last three games with a sprained ankle.
Cross inserted him into the power forward slot as he played a small lineup for most of the second half. The freshman responded with solid defense and added six points.
"It was good to have him back tonight and he really helped us at that spot," the head coach said.
Bradley Gay added seven points and a season-high six rebounds.
Dion Prewster recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds to lead SFA.
The Mavericks now have a week off as they return to action at Texas Hall next Saturday against Texas State. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. and tickets are available at utatickets.com or at the Texas Hall box office before the game.
