UT Arlington (5-5) vs. Georgia State (5-4)
Wednesday | 5 p.m. | College Park Center

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By Michael Eldridge | @DFWSportsMike

ARLINGTON, Texas - The Sun Belt grind begins for UT Arlington on Wednesday night as it hosts Georgia State to open conference play at College Park Center.

The Lady Mavericks concluded the 22nd-ranked strength of schedule through nonconference play 5-5 and UTA coach Krista Gerlich is leaning on the tough preseason to have the team prepared for what is ahead.

"It gave us tons of different looks and it really challenged us," Gerlich said. "We upgraded our schedule so we had to battle through things."

UTA ended nonconference play with a successful two-game trip to Houston Baptist and UTSA that it swept prior to the Christmas break. Gerlich emphasized the importance in ending with a positive, but also noted how important it is to begin the Sun Belt schedule on a high note.

"It doesn't matter who you are playing, you are starting conference and that is what you are working for," Gerlich said. "Every game counts. You don't want to dig yourself a hole. It is really important to get a good start."

The balance attack continued for the Lady Mavs on the road. Amara Wainwright and Cierra Johnson would led offensively during the road trip. Through 10 games, UTA has had five different leading scorers.

"It is always better to have kids that can step up at any given day," Gerlich said. "It isn't easy to scout. It is really nice that we have some balance and have different weapons. I like the way the box score has been looking lately.

Wainwright posted a career-high 24 points against WKU in UTA's last home game and followed it up with a team-high 13 points against HBU. Johnson, who earlier posted an 18-point game, scored 17 against UTSA to lead the Lady Mavs.

UTA is 6-0 all-time against its first two Sun Belt opponents in Georgia State and Georgia Southern. Despite the success against the conference foes in the past, UTA is expecting a fight in both games.

"Georgia State is a brand new team, they have a lot of new kids and have a lot of energy and confidence," Gerlich said. "They have guards that can really shoot. I really like watching them play because they play with a lot of energy. We are really going to have to control their runs.

"Southern has struggled this year, but we can't let that be our focal point. We need to just focus on our game plan and focus on what we have done to prepare for conference play."

Both Lady Mavs' games tip at 5 p.m. in a men's and women's doubleheader. Tickets for UTA's bout with Georgia State are available for Buy One Get One Free using SunBelt1 at checkout.