By Art Garcia | @ArtGarcia92

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Entire days off on the road are hard to come by. Due to travel and scheduling, it's rare for a college basketball team to spend more than 48 hours in any city away from home.

The UT Arlington Mavericks found themselves with a rarity after Friday's upset win at Ohio State, a complete Sunday off in Memphis after busing into town Saturday from Columbus. UTA squares off with the Memphis Tigers on Monday night.

Tipoff between UTA and Memphis is 7:30 p.m. CT on ESPNews. The Dallas-Fort Worth radio broadcast is on flagship station KKGM 1630 AM.

Instead of lounging around the hotel or taking in Beale Street, a team trip was arranged for the National Civil Rights Museum on the outskirts of downtown. The museum is built around the former Lorraine Motel, the site of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassination in 1968.

"It was a great opportunity for the guys to learn a little bit about the country's history," UTA coach Scott Cross said. "It was pretty amazing to see all the different exhibits they had and the struggles African Americans went through. It was hopefully a life-changing experience for the guys."

The self-guided tour began with the origins of slavery in North America and continued through the Civil Rights Movement. The interactive exhibits ended with the room King occupied at the Lorraine Motel, just a few feet from the balcony where the Civil Rights leader was gunned down.

"I learned a lot of things about Martin Luther King, Jr. and about slavery that I didn't know about," sophomore Kevin Hervey said. "We got to see the place where Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot and that was very moving.

"Being on this basketball team, we've gone a lot of places like the Bahamas and other cities, but going to this museum is something I can tell my kids about someday. I would never have gone somewhere like that had I not been on this basketball team, so I'm very thankful for that."

For the UTA coaching staff, the museum visit is as important to team building as the practice that followed at FedEx Forum.

"The more you can hang around each other off the court, I think the better you're going to be on the court," Cross said. "It's a natural cause-and-effect relationship, so you want to do as much stuff as you can off the court and those bonds grow. They trust each other and when the going gets tough, there's just something about it where they can fight through it."

Cross added that his responsibility to the student-athletes who make up the men's basketball program extends beyond the court.

"If all I do is coach basketball with them, I'm not doing a very good job," he said. "My job is to mold these guys into men and teach them life lessons. We can do a lot of that through the game of basketball. It teaches you how to persevere, how to deal with adversity and be part of a team.

"That's why this was so important. The country has come a long way, but we still have a long way to go. It's good for all of us to see the struggles we've gone through."

The visit was especially poignant for one member of the squad. Senior forward Kennedy Eubanks' mother, Wyneé, grew up next door to King's childhood home in Atlanta. As a kid, she played with Martin Luther King and his siblings.

"It was pretty powerful," Kennedy said. "I was speechless. I learned a lot. I'm definitely glad that we came with Coach Cross."

Kennedy called his mother after leaving the museum.

Single game, season tickets or All Sport Passes are available at UTATickets.com or by contacting the College Park Center Box Office at (817) 272-9595.