Final Stats | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery

SAN MARCOS, Texas - UTA junior center Rebekah VanDijk continued her dominance of Texas State as she led the Lady Mavericks to a 61-39 win on Saturday at Strahan Coliseum.

VanDijk, entering with two of her three top career performances against the Bobcats, was big yet again, posting a game-high 30 points. VanDijk has scored 30, 33 and 26 points in the last three meetings against the Bobcats respectively. With the win, UTA reached 3-0 in conference play for the first time since 2007-08 and improved to 10-3 overall.

UTA's third-consecutive win in the I-35 series dropped the Bobcats to 6-8 overall and 1-2 in league play.

VanDijk's offensive outburst edged the junior to the brink of reaching the 1,000-point milestone. She heads into a matchup against South Alabama on Thursday with 985-career points. Only 17 players in UTA history have achieved the feat.

While VanDijk was the lone Lady Mav to reach double figures, several UTA players chipped in. Aysia Evans had nine points on 4-of-8 shooting, while Cierra Johnson matched a career-high with 10 rebounds, produced six points, three assists and two steals.

For as hot as the Bobcats were to open the game from the 3-point line, they were just as cold in the second quarter as UTA's defense clamped down. Texas State hit five 3-pointers out of six field goals in the opening quarter, and then went without a made field goal for the final 7:51 of the opening half.

Meanwhile, a patient UTA attack overcame its slow start as VanDijk got hot from inside the paint. The junior converted on five attempts in the second quarter and helped UTA to a 18-2 advantage in points in the paint. UTA trailed early in the second, but a 13-2 run capped by an Aysia Evans 3-pointer sent the Lady Mavs into the half leading by five.

VanDijk continued to begin the second half, scoring five of UTA's first seven points. However, the Bobcats would continue to nip at the heels of the Lady Mavs, as the 3-point shot continued to be the biggest threat. Texas State cut the lead down to just two points.

Digging deep on defense once again, UTA broke another run, this time a 10-0 spurt and built the lead back to above double digits. Cierra Johnson put in six during the outburst and Texas State turned the ball over on three consecutive possessions.

Two Texas State turnovers kept momentum on UTA's side to begin the fourth, UTA converted them into a quick five-point run, forcing an early Bobcat timeout. The Bobcats would go scoreless for more than seven minutes once again with UTA's offense staying hot for the remainder.

KEY RUNS
First Half
As Texas State was hot from beyond the arc, UTA settled into what it knew how to do best, feed the ball down low. Rebekah VanDijk was able to convert on a game-high 14 points, shooting 7-11 from the field as UTA went on a 13-2 run.

Second Half
Mirroring the first-half stretch, Texas State trimmed its deficit down to just two points before UTA's defense woke up once again. UTA turned the Bobcats over on three consecutive trips down the floor and closed the third quarter on a 10-0 run.

KEY STATS
VanDijk's 30 points were her third 30-point or more outburst of her career, two of which have come against Texas State. She also posted a career-high 34 points against Seton Hall in November. UTA's streak of forcing 20 or more turnovers came to an end at nine as Texas State had just 17. UTA entered 13th in the nation with 22.5 turnovers forced per game.

UPCOMING GAME
UTA continues its three-game road trip when it heads to Alabama for a pair of games. The Lady Mavs take on South Alabama on Thursday (7 p.m.) before taking on defending SBC champion Troy on Saturday (2 p.m.) The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are scheduled for a week of March Madness in the Big Easy. New Orleans will once again be home to the two championships that will take place at Lakefront Arena from March 7-12 and ticket books can now be purchased from your school's ticket office. For more information, visit the Sun Belt Conference's championship central websites - Men's Championship - Women's Championship - and be sure to follow the #FunBelt on social media - @SunBelt.