TULSA, Okla. – It was a milestone night for UT Arlington with Cierra Johnson stealing away the headline from six Lady Mavs making their homecoming trip to Oklahoma. Johnson hit the nail on the head with her 1,000th career point in UTA's 80-62 win over Oral Roberts on Thursday night at the Mabee Center.

Scoring a season-high 24 points, Johnson became the program's 19th member of the 1,000-point club, joining former teammate Rebekah VanDijk - now student coach - in the illustrious club. The Bedford, Texas native was 9-of-11 from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 from long range, grabbing a steal as she approaches the all-time defensive mark, needing just 19 more.

"I thought all of our kids did a great job tonight but it started with Cierra opening the game going 3-for-3 from the three," UTA coach Krista Gerlich said. "She was locked in and did what seniors are supposed to do. She was really good in all aspects of the game. What an accomplishment for a defensive specialist to join the 1,000-point club tonight. She has really developed as an all around great basketball player and will write her name in our record books in her last year as a Lady Mav."

Oklahoma provided just the right home cooking for freshman Terryn Milton as she was one of four in double-digit scoring to send UT Arlington to its third consecutive win. Milton, from Tulsa, Okla., caught fire early in the second half on the way to 13 points during the third quarter and 17 overall. Milton is one of six Lady Mavericks from Oklahoma making their return, including three from Tulsa (Aysia Evans and Lauren Billie).

"What a great road win for our program," Gerlich said. "I have a lot of respect for ORU and their coaching staff and I thought our girls really focused on our game plan and executed it really well. The crowd support from our Oklahoma family was incredible. It's always exciting to bring our girls back home and let them play in front of their families."

UTA improved its overall record to 5-2 with the win, while Oral Roberts went to 5-5 for the year. UTA will close its season-long five-game road trip after a 10-day break when it heads down to face in-state rival Houston on Dec. 17. UTA is 3-1 thus far during the trip. 

Joining in doubles figures, Laurynn McGowen and Claire Chastain kept UTA's streak of having three or more in double figures in every contest this season. McGowen, also on fire in the third stanza, finished with 12 points, while Chastain finished off her third consecutive came with double-digit scoring with 11. UTA finished with 54.0 percent shooting, its fourth time this season above the 50-percent mark and third consecutive. Equally impressive from long range, UTA connecting on 8-of-14 3-point attempts. 
 
On the defensive side, UTA forced 17 turnovers from the Golden Eagles and just 34.5 percent shooting. ORU connected on 12 from long range, led by two scorers who were in double figures. Kenijo Lippe finished with a 20, while Lakota Beatty had 16. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a three-point party to get the contest started as Cierra Johnson was heating up from the outside. Her three treys to open the game set the pace for a quick offense for both sides in the opener with a combined seven hitting from deep. UTA would take an eight-point lead late into the quarter before the Golden Eagles clawed back, but Johnson's two from the charity stripe late in the period gave UTA a five-point edge, and Johnson a game-high 11 points through the first 10.
 
With Aysia Evans hitting a 3-pointer to open the second, it appeared like another offensive spurt was on the horizon, but it was the defense that settled into for both teams to tell the story of the second stanza. McGowen balanced out UTA's shooting as she hit on all three of her attempts of the second, and all four of the first half. McGowen's quick dashes to the rim sparked a 10-point lead, but ORU scored the final four of the half, including one at the buzzer.
 
Milton helped turn up the intensity in the second half with her inside jumper connecting on the first four attempts and pushed the UTA lead to 18 points. The defense was equally impressive, giving up just five points in the first five minutes of the half. Milton would finish with 13 points scored in third, hitting on 6-of-8 shots taken.
 
The Lady Mavs continued their streak of starting hot in the fourth with quick run to restore the 20-point lead. However, back-to-back trips down the floor with ORU three pointers sparked a flurry of timeouts with momentum slowing on both sides.
 
A sweet pass inside out of the timeout found Johnson inside with her connection with Milton just getting started. During a 30-second stretch Milton would pick up two steals and three assists, all to Johnson with UTA closing out the contest with a fury.

NOTABLE
UTA used the same starting lineup for the third consecutive game with Claire Chastain, Katie Ferrell, Teryn Milton, Aysia Evans and Cierra Johnson. UTA featured six players from Oklahoma, playing in their home state for the first time. Aysia Evans, Lauren Billie and Terryn Milton all played in the Tulsa area in high school. Evans and Milton each won state championships at the Mabee Center... The double-digit win was UTA's fourth of the season... Johnson's 24 points were two shy of her career high in 2016 against Troy. Johnson had 22 against Arkansas in the second game of the year.