Final Stats

By Art Garcia | @ArtGarcia92

BOONE, N.C. - UT Arlington spent most of Thursday night playing from behind at Appalachian State, but the Mavericks were ahead when it mattered most.

Erick Neal drilled a huge 3-pointer with 2:16 remaining and the Mavs were able to hold to a 71-67 victory over the Mountaineers. UTA extended its winning streak to seven games, improving to 12-2 overall and 3-0 in the Sun Belt.

Despite trailing for the first 35 minutes against App State, UT Arlington is off to the best 14-game start in program history and the unbeaten run is the longest in four years.

The Mavericks took their first lead of the game (61-60) with five minutes left when Neal found Nathan Hawkins for fastbreak layup. Neal's free throw gave UTA a 63-62 edge before he nailed a 3-pointer for a four-point advantage.

The Mavs would close out their first conference road win of the season at the foul line.

Jalen Jones led UTA with 14 points and added eight rebounds. Neal scored 13 and dished out six assists. Kevin Hervey came up just short of his eighth double-double with 10 boards and nine points. Mairega Clarke and Faith Pope each scored nine off the bench.

App State guard Frank Eaves led all scorers with 21 points, but scored only four in the second half. The Mountaineers are 2-12 overall and 0-3 in league play.

The Mavericks were in an early hole, as App State raced out to a 20-7 lead in the game's first five minutes. UTA would get back into it with an 8-0 run, highlighted by Nick Pallas' steal and breakaway layup leading to a three-point play.

The Mountaineers' edge was down to 24-21 before they made another push to lead by double digits. The Mavs went into halftime down 44-35, easily their largest halftime deficit this season.

Pope had a team-high nine points in the first half. Neal and Jones each had six points. UTA was shooting 43.3 percent (13-30) at the break. App State was at 57.7 percent (15-26) from the floor and 60 percent (6-10) from 3-point territory.

Turning Point
The Mavericks opened the second half with an 8-0 run to get within 44-43. Though the Mountaineers would continue to hang onto the lead for most of the half, the Mavs were in striking distance.

Key Stats
UTA outscored App State 36-23 in the second half. The Mountaineers were held to 27.6-percent shooting (8-29) after the break. ... UTA held a 36-16 advantage in points in the paint.

Notable
The Mavs were down at halftime for only the second time this season. The other was a 34-32 deficit at Ohio State. ... UTA is 12-2 for the first time in program history. ... Hervey didn't score in double figures for the first time this season. ... UTA is 3-1 all-time against App State, including 2-1 as Sun Belt foes. ... UTA is 5-2 on the road this season.

Up Next
The Mavericks have a nice break before hitting the road again next week in Alabama. UTA is at Troy on Jan. 14 and South Alabama on Jan. 16. Both games are on KKGM 1630 AM.

Quotable
Scott Cross opening statement:
"To be honest with you, App State outplayed us for the majority of the game. Our guys did come through down the stretch. We were able to get some stops down the stretch, make plays down the stretch. I think we did a good job rebounding most of the game. In the second half we were able to move the ball better. We dug ourselves in a hole. This is a tough place to play with the elevation on top of it."

Cross on strength of teams in the Sun Belt:
"We tell our guys that all the time. It might be a blessing in disguise. Hopefully this will get our guys' attention. I don't know what they were thinking. I knew it was going to be a meat grinder coming down here."