University of Texas Arlington
George Washington
WBB: Mavs fall in season opener
11/9/2012 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 9, 2012
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The UT Arlington women's basketball team lost its first game of the season, 80-47, to the George Washington Colonials in Washington, D.C.
"We were a little rattled from early nerves," UT Arlington head coach Samantha Morrow said. "GW turned the pressure up a little but, we kind of shot ourselves in the foot."
The first five minutes of play were typical for a first game, as the two teams struggled to get find a rhythm. The squads combined to misfire 15 of the first 17 shots, with 10 of those misses coming from the Colonials.
The Mavericks grabbed their first lead of the season (5-4) after a free three from Desherra Nwanguma. Malaika Green gave the Mavs some cushion after draining a 3-pointer from the top of the key.
GW took the 12-10 edge after a jump shot from Danni Jackson. UTA turned the ball over on the next possession and Jackson picked up another two points for the Colonials. The Mavs fell back 20-13, but a 3-pointer from junior Laila Suleiman pulled UT Arlington within five.
The Mavericks went into the locker room trailing George Washington 27-24, despite shooting better than the Colonials from the field.
George Washington started the second half with a 9-2 run, forcing an early timeout from Morrow. Chauntandra Williams and Aron Garcia scored the first eight points for the Mavericks in the second half.
The Colonials were able to stretch out their lead as the Mavs turned the ball over on six out of seven possessions. George Washington shot 52.5 percent from the field in the second half, while the Mavericks shot 24.1 percent.
"We just had some mistakes and they fed off of it," Morrow said. "GW came out with a lot more intensity than we did and you can see a little bit of our indecisiveness and not really knowing each other. Saw the open person, but maybe didn't make the pass. We couldn't get out of it."
The Mavericks head to East Lansing, Michigan to take on the Michigan State Spartans Sunday at 1 p.m. in their second game of the season.
