March 1, 2016

Final Stats | Photo Gallery

By Michael Eldridge | @DFWSportsMike

ARLINGTON, Texas - Something about facing Texas State agrees withRebekah VanDijk. The sophomore center erupted with a career-high 33 points to help UT Arlington over Texas State 78-69 Tuesday at College Park Center and complete the season sweep of its in-state rival.

VanDijk's performance bested the 26 she put up against the Bobcats in the Feb. 9 meeting and was tied for the second-highest scoring output of the season in the Sun Belt. With the win, UTA (14-14, 9-9 SBC) pulled within one game of South Alabama and Troy, which sat idle in fourth at 10-8. The Lady Mavs close their season with home games Thursday and Saturday, respectively.

Amara Wainwright and LaShanda Green joined VanDijk in double digits. Wainwright scored 12 on 4-10 shooting, while Green was 7-8 at the line to help her to 10 points.

Similarly to the matchup in San Marcos, UT Arlington opened the game with a strong first quarter. The Lady Mavs shot at a 50-percent clip from the floor to build up a 19-11 lead after the first. Lauren Billie, starting in her second consecutive game, helped lead UTA as she knocked down three treys in the half for an early nine points. The Lady Mavs had seven 3-pointers in the first half.

VanDijk picked up the offense from there, as UTA was unsuccessful on its four long-range attempts in the second half. The sophomore was a perfect 9-9 in the second half from the floor and knocked down 26 of her points.

Turning point
With UTA leading by double digits, Texas State made a run to cut the deficit to just three points late in the game. However, UTA responded by converted on eight free throws in the final 34 seconds to ice the win.

Key Stats
The six Texas State turnovers tied a single-game record for the Bobcats. Texas State turned UTA's 17 turnovers into a 21-6 advantage in points off of turnovers. ... UTA shot 53.3 percent from the floor, including 61.5 percent in the fourth quarter. ... The 26 points in the fourth quarter tied a season high for most in a quarter.

Notable
VanDijk picked up two blocks to surpass Shalyn Martin (2010-11) for 10th in single-season blocks with 47. VanDijk has 99 in her career to tie Tonya Johnson for fifth in UTA history. ... VanDijk's 33 points helped her surpass 700 in her career.

Up next
UTA continues through the final week of the season with a pair of games against Alabama schools. The Lady Mavs host South Alabama on Thursday and Troy on Saturday.

Quotable
UT Arlington coach Krista Gerlich on the team's performance:
"I am really proud of these girls and I like that they are having fun and joyful after a win like that. It is obviously always fun to beat an in-state rival and the girls attacked it well. Texas State was going to be a tougher ball game, I knew they would shoot it well. I was worried during warmups, we did not shoot it well."

Gerlich on the play of VanDijk:
"Rebekah's performance was great. Our kids did a nice job of continuing to go to her. We clearly had a size advantage and I thought they did a good job in continuing to feed her."

VanDijk on her career night:
"The guards did a really good job in getting me the ball at the right time. I had to work to get open and they just knew when to pass it, they passed it high and led me to the basket every time."