Men's hoops hosts Samford Saturday
11/25/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 25, 2011
Arlington, Texas - UT Arlington Men's Basketball Game Preview
UT Arlington (3-1) vs. Samford (0-3)
Saturday, Nov. 23, 2011 - 7 pm CT
Texas Hall - Arlington, Texas
Radio: KVCE-AM (1160)/kvceradio.com
Series: Series Tied 4-4
UT Arlington will look to remain perfect at home on the season as the Mavericks host Samford Saturday in what will be its third game in the last five days.
UTA comes into the game 3-1 after losing at ninth-ranked Baylor 75-65 in Waco on Wednesday. But the Mavericks are off to a fast start on the season. If they can win their next two games to go to 5-1 they will tie for the fourth best start in school history.
The Mavericks defense has been their calling card this season as they are holding their opponents to just 66.0 points per game on 38.4% from the field. UTA has also forced its opponents into almost 22 turnovers a game.
The defense is not only impressive on paper and is starting to get noticed by coaches around the nation. "Even in the Big 12, they pressure and trap the ball as well as anybody," Baylor head coach Scott Drew said after Wednesday's game. "It is very similar to what Missouri used to do in the past."
Meanwhile the Mavericks offense is averaging 82.2 points per game and that is ranked 32nd in the nation. LaMarcus Reed leads three UTA players in double figures as he is averaging 13.5 points per game after scoring a season-high 21 points at Baylor. Bo Ingram is behind him at 13.0 points per game while Kevin Butler averages 10.0 a contest.
The Mavericks have already avenged two losses from last year as they have defeated Louisiana Tech and North Texas over the past week. UTA lost to Samford last year 68-60 in Birmingham and has the chance Saturday to make it a trifecta of defeating teams they lost to last season.
Samford comes into the game 0-3 after losing their last game to Georgia State 55-47. The Bulldogs' 2011-12 roster boasts four experienced seniors in Jeffrey Merritt, Matthew Friday, Kaylin Johnson and John Peterson. Merritt leads the team in scoring at 11.7 points per game.
Tickets for the game are available at the Texas Hall Box Office on Saturday or on utatickets.com.
