March 13, 2014

Sun Belt Conference Men's Championships
No. 6 UT Arlington (15-16) vs. No. 3 UL Lafayette (20-11)
Friday | 8:30 p.m. CT
New Orleans, Louisiana
Radio: 1630 AM
TV/Stream: Sun Belt Network/ ESPN3/Watch ESPN
Live Stats: UTAMavs.com via SunBeltSports.org

Photo Gallery

UTA-ULM Box | Final Stats

NEW ORLEANS - UT Arlington advanced to the Sun Belt Conference Championship quarterfinals with Thursday night's 68-65 victory over UL Monroe at Lakefront Arena.

The Mavericks (15-16) will face UL Lafayette (20-11) Friday night at 8:30 p.m. The Rajin' Cajuns (20-11) beat UT Arlington in both regular-season meetings.

Senior guard Reger Dowell led UT Arlington with 18 points despite 6-18 shooting. Junior guard Jamel Outler scored 16, including eight consecutive points as UTA surged ahead late in the game.

Junior center Anthony Walker added season highs in points (12) and rebounds (10). Making his sixth start of the season, Walker had 10 points after halftime. He scored four times off offensive rebounds in the second half, three being dunks.

Junior guard Lonnie McClanahan scored 12 off the bench, and senior forward Brandon Edwards grabbed 12 rebounds.

Dowell opened the scoring for the Mavericks with a 3-pointer. The Warhawks took an early timeout after senior guard Kyle McElvain drilled his first 3-pointer for an 8-4 UTA lead.

The game remained close throughout the first half before UL Monroe began to separate in the final minutes. The Warhawks went into the locker room up 36-32 thanks to a late run.

The Mavericks were shooting only 34.5 percent (10-29) in the first half. Dowell scored a team-high nine points, with McClanahan adding seven. Edwards had six rebounds.

After ULM scored the first basket of the second half, the Mavericks reeled off an 8-2 run that included two follow-up slam dunks by Walker and a Dowell-to-Walker alley-oop to tie the game at 40.

UT Arlington retook the lead (50-49) after a pair of McClanahan free throws at the 9:28 mark. Outler tied the game at 60 with a 3-pointer and gave UTA a 63-60 edge with three free throws with 3:34 remaining.

NOTES: Dowell and Edwards received their All-Sun Belt Conference awards before the game. Dowell made the first team, while Edwards was a third-team selection. Redshirt guard Drew Charles picked up his All-Academic award.

UT Arlington Quotes
Opening Statement from Scott Cross: "It was a great game. Louisiana-Monroe really came out as the more aggressive team in the first half. They beat us in almost every hustle category. At halftime we talked to our guys about it, you win or you go home, and these seniors stepped up. I thought Anthony Walker was incredible for us in the second half. I thought he really changed the game. I am just so thankful to the man upstairs that we were able to find a way to win tonight. "

Question for Head Coach Scott Cross: Question… What were you able to do to shut down Marvin Williams and the ULM inside game in the second half? "I think our guys picked up the intensity. They were the more aggressive team in the first half. He had a monster first half, he looked like a man possessed, and he really wanted to win. Our guys needed to step up to the challenge. Our guys looked a little bit flat. They did a great job scouting us. We asked our guys what they were doing. Anytime you're in postseason play that first game is always hard shooting the basketball; playing with new basketballs, new rims, and new court. Sometimes it can become a mental thing. Their zone was good and they knew who our shooters were, they did an excellent job sticking with those guys. They also hung back with Brandon Edwards who we try to get the ball to a lot. They just did a great job scouting us, so you have to give them credit for holding us to a lower number of points."

Question for Head Coach Scott Cross: Question… Can you talk about Jamel Outler and Anthony Walker's play tonight? "Both of those guys stepped up big. Anthony Walker, I said he had his best game against South Alabama the other night, he was just as good if not better tonight. He is the most athletic guy I have ever coached. He has NBA-level athleticism we just have to get him stronger. He played with a little bit of an edge in the second half and that completely changed the intensity. A dunk, a three those are momentum plays and he had three or four of them in the second half alone and that I thought really changed the momentum. Jamel hit some big shots for us, Jamel's one of those guys if he misses four or five he's going to keep shooting and sooner or later they're going to go in for you. As long as he takes good shots, I feel confident he is going to make them."

Question for Head Coach Scott Cross: Question… Can you describe what it is like to go through so many tight games? "It has been a season full of those. I was talking with my wife about it and I counted 13 or 14 that have come down to the last minute or so of the game. The positive of it is that it helps you this time of year. The negative of it is that I have probably aged five or six years this season. I am just proud that we have an opportunity to play again tomorrow and just thankful our guys played so hard in the second half."

Question for Head Coach Scott Cross: Question… Can you talk about your struggles against UL Lafayette and what you need to do to overcome that? "Their big two guys, Elfrid Payton and Shawn Long are both NBA prospects. They both have killed us both games. We've had early deficits, big ones, we were down 40-15 on our home court. We fought all the way back and had a chance to tie the game at the end of the game. We can't have those early deficits. We have to play with energy and do a much better job on those two guys. If we let them go off on us and just score at will it will be a long night. They are a really good basketball team, they have a lot of weapons, they are well-coached, and play good defense. We are just going to have to play our best basketball tomorrow."

Question for Reger Dowell: Question… What was ULM doing to keep your scoring output lower? "I just think playing the zone. In zone, you have to move the ball around a little more and run out some of the clock before getting your shots up. It slowed down our tempo a little bit."

Question for Reger Dowell: Question… What's it like playing so many close games? "Just try to win. That has been the story of the year. I don't think we've had too many games where we have beaten anybody by 20 points. We just try to keep fighting, keep fighting and let the results happen."

Question for Reger Dowell: Question… Reger, you had a tough shooting night, did you get frustrated and how did you deal with it? "I definitely got frustrated. I have to do a better job of not showing it. In the second half, I got more aggressive as far as getting into the paint and getting my guys shots. Bad shooting nights happen from time to time. You just have to play through it and find another way to help your team win some games."

Question for Brandon Edwards: Question… What was ULM doing to keep your scoring output lower? "Shot selection. In the first half it wasn't that great, our guards weren't doing a very good job of getting in the paint. In the second half we came out a little more aggressive and we were able to find guys for open looks."

Question for Brandon Edwards: Question… What's it like playing so many close games? "They are tough. The enthusiasm helps us out. We are just trying to win the games."