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By Michael Eldridge | @DFWSportsMike

ARLINGTON, Texas - UT Arlington opened up the New Year in a big way with its biggest conference win since 2007. The Lady Mavericks shot 55.6 percent on the way to a 70-31 win over Georgia Southern on Saturday night at College Park Center.

UTA (6-6, 1-1 SBC) had four reach double digits in the 39-point rout, the largest league win since a 51-point victory over Nicholls State in 2007. Cierra Johnson led the way with 17 points. She was near perfect after going 8-of-9 from the field, adding three steals.

Joining in on the fun, Amara Wainwright had 15 points as she would convert on three 3-pointers in the matchup and was 6-10 shooting. Breck Clark poured in a career-high 11 points and Rebekah VanDijk added 10.

UTA opened up the game on fire from the field, knocking down seven of its first eight shots to build a 17-3 lead. The Lady Mavs opened on an 8-0 run before the Eagles would hit a 3-pointer, UTA picked up seven early points off of three turnovers and held southern to just two field goals in the first seven minutes.

After shooting more than 70 percent in the opening quarter, the Lady Mavs followed it up with a 53.3 percent second. VanDijk produced her offense in the first half to help UTA to a 20-4 advantage in points in the paint. She was 4-of-6 in the first half.

The defense stifled any attempt for the Eagles to try to claw into the lead. UTA held Georgia Southern to just 1-11 shooting in the third and 2-8 in the fourth. The Lady Mavs forced 22 GS turnovers, converting it into a 23-6 advantage in points off of turnovers.

The Lady Mavs improved to 3-0 all-time against Georgia Southern and have outscored the Eagles 136-72 in the last two meetings.

Turning point
UTA left little doubt that it would have a hangover from giving up a double-digit lead to Georgia State on Wednesday. The Lady Mavs opened the game with an 8-0 run that was compounded by a 9-0 run following a 3-point shot. After letting GSU outscore UTA 25-2 in the third, UTA outscored the Eagles 23-5 to put the game away.

Key Stats
UTA entered with the 51st-best scoring defense in the nation at 56.5 points per game, besting it by holding its fourth opponent to 54 points or less. ... The 31 points were Georgia Southern's lowest since a 28-point performance against Georgia on Nov. 24

Notable
The 55.6 percent shooting was a conference-best through two nights of Sun Belt play. ... The 31 points scored for GS was the fourth lowest for the Sun Belt this season.

Up next
UT Arlington begins a three-game road trip in conference play on Thursday at Appalachian State. The trek continues the following week against Troy and South Alabama. UTA was a combined 5-1 against the trio last season.

Quotable

UTA coach Krista Gerlich's on bouncing back:
"It's huge. It says a lot bout our kids and what they are made of and kind of their intentions. They really took to heart what happened on Wednesday and learned from it and came out and made a statement."

Gerlich on the way the team spread the offense:
"Our balance is really good. That's what I love about this team. when they play hard for 40 minutes and really concentrate on what we're trying to do in the game plan, we have anybody that can so score. They did a really nice job of scoring the basketball today."

Gerlich on starting the New Year off with a big win:
"You've got to protect home court and that's what we were disappointed with on Wednesday night against Georgia State. I thought that they came out and did a nice job of taking home court and getting some momentum before going on the road now and trying to steal a few."