Final Stats

By Michael Eldridge | @DFWSportsMike

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - UT Arlington survived UTSA's furious comeback attempt to defeat the Roadrunners 51-47 on Monday night at the Convocation Center.

The Lady Mavericks (5-5) held a 15-point advantage midway through the third quarter as the defense seemed too much for the home team. However, the Roadrunners (4-5) chipped away at UTA's lead to trail by just one point with a minute remaining. Rebekah VanDijk converted an easy bucket in the lane, and after UTSA missed a 3-point attempt to take the lead, Amara Wainwright iced the victory with a pair of free throws with 2.7 to go.

The win ended a four-game streak for UTSA between the I-35 rivals as UTA improved to 31-28 all-time against the Roadrunners. UTA also clinched a .500 record through nonconference play, their second consecutive run without a losing record.

For the second consecutive game UTA won the turnover margin and held a 22-14 advantage in points off of turnovers. UTSA turned the ball over 10 times in the first quarter and 24 times overall.

Cierra Johnson led with a game-high 17 points. Johnson was just 5-17 from the field, but knocked down two 3-pointers and was 5-6 at the free-throw line.

Turning point
UTA was able to take advantage of UTSA's mishaps to start the third as the Roadrunners turned the ball over on three consecutive possessions. The run helped UTA build its 15-point advantage, one that would prove to be just enough to pull out the win.

Key Stats
Johnson's 17 points were one shy over her season high and three short of the career mark. Johnson has six steals, two short of tying her career best. LaShanda Green joined Johnson in double figures with 10 points. She was 5-of-8 from the free-throw line and 2-6 from the field.

Up next
UT Arlington opens up Sun Belt play at College Park Center on Dec. 30. The Lady Mavs have won their last four against Georgia State and continue the homestand against Georgia Southern on Jan. 2.

Quotable

UTA coach Krista Gerlich's on ending nonconference with a positive:
"We really talked about trying to even our record and being 5-and-5 going into the break and gaining some momentum for us. This was a great win for us, the fact that we had to grind it out and still win is huge for our mentality going into conference play and you have to have that kind of mindset."

Gerlich on the play of the guards:
"Cierra was outstanding. She was within her self but aggressive and determined and put us on her back, which is big for a sophomore. For Amara it was interesting because they were keying on her, but that 3-pointer she hit before halftime was huge for us. LaShanda had just two turnovers in 36 minutes with a face-guard. The guards really played well."