ARLINGTON  – It's a big week for UT Arlington with a pivotal trip on tap for the Lady Mavericks. UTA takes on perennial Sun Belt powers Arkansas State (8-7, 3-1 SBC) and Little Rock (7-8, 3-1 SBC) during a two-game trek through Arkansas beginning Thursday night.

The Lady Mavericks pushed their winning streak to three games with a double-digit win over Coastal Carolina in their last time out. The 79-53 victory improved the team's record to 11-4 overall and 3-1 in league play. Senior Cierra Johnson captured the team's first league player of the week honor with an impressive week that saw her vault to the top spot in the all-time UTA steals lead at 286. Johnson posted a 29-point game in a double-overtime win on Thursday night against Appalachian State, and followed it up with 12 against the Chanticleers, also grabbing seven steals in the win. 

With an important week early in the Sun Belt slate on tap, the lone matchup with the Arkansas squads points to one of several factors in why the week is so important to the Lady Mavs. Little Rock entered the season as the league favorites after capturing the crown last season, while the Red Wolves are back to their normal waves having been a regular at the top of the end of the year standings for several seasons since UTA joined the conference. 

The Lady Mavs haven't had much success against their foes all-time. UTA is winless in eight trips to the two teams since joining the SBC in 2013-14 season, while winning just one of 12 against Arkansas State dating back to 1986 when both squads were in the Southland Conference. UTA attempted to comeback from a double-digit deficit last season at ASU before falling late, 85-80. UTA trimmed it down to just a one-point deficit before the Red Wolves were able to take advantage of shots at the free-throw line. 

FOLLOWING THE LADY MAVERICKS 
Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $4.99 per month, or $49.99 per year and cancel anytime. Fans wishing to see behind-the-scenes action and get updates from the court are encouraged to follow the team's Twitter account at www.twitter.com/ladymavhoops. Live stats for each of UTA's games can be found at UTAStats.com. 
 
KNOWLEDGE NUGGETS
UTA is 15-6 all-time against Arkansas State and just 2-7 on the road. against the Red Wolves... Johnson is just 14 steals away from becoming the fifth player in SBC history to record 300 steals or more in a career... UTA is 6-2 away from the home court this season. 

LOCKING DOWN THE HOME COURT
UTA was 13-2 at College Park Center during the 2017-18 season with the lone losses coming to Houston and South Alabama... UTA is 28-7 at CPC dating back to the 2016-17 season... The Lady Mavs went over the .500 mark during last season for the first time since opening CPC in 2012. UTA is 53-46 all-time at CPC. 

RECORD-BREAKING NONCONFERENCE
UTA's 8 wins in nonconference were the most in program history in non-league action. UTA has reached 7 several times, last in 2016... UTA posted a 5-game road winning streak to close non-league action... Cierra Johnson led the team in scoring with 13.3 points per game. She became the 19th player in program history with 1,000 or more points... UTA had featured wins of 20 or more points in 5 of the nonconference matchups... UTA defeated Houston for the first time after dropping the first 10 meetings.
 
COACHING STAFF
UTA coach Krista Gerlich is in her sixth season at the helm of UTA and enters with a record of 255-131 overall and 87-79 at UTA. Talby Justus was named the program's associate head coach during the offseason, while Jordan Vessels was named an assistant coach after serving as the team's Director of Operations. Assistant coach Ashley Crawford remains the team's recruiting coordinator. 

HOME TICKET INFORMATION
Single-game tickets start at just $6 for women and $8 for men, with group rates, military discounts and other cost-saving packages available as well. For additional information related to group tickets, contact Assistant Director of Marketing & Outbound Sales Jeremy Malnes at 817-272-9607 or via email at jeremy.malnes@uta.edu. Season tickets also remain on sale for as low as $50 per seat. For seating options and pricing, as well as Maverick Club benefits, click here. 

Additionally, with a purchase of men's basketball season tickets (Starting at $99), fans are eligible to receive complimentary season tickets to women's basketball, volleyball, softball and baseball for the entire 2018-19 season via the Mav Mania All Sports Pass. For more information on opting in to this complimentary package, or for any other season-ticket questions, please contact the UTA Box Office at 817-272-9595 or visit the College Park Center during regular business hours.

CLEAR BAG POLICY
In an effort to enhance public safety and the fan experience, for all UTA men's and women's home games this season the College Park Center will implement a clear-bag policy. All purses, containers, backpacks or anything larger than a small clutch bag are prohibited, and items must be placed in a clear tote bag not to exceed 12" x 6" x 12". For more information, fans are encouraged to visitUTAMavs.com/BasketballGameday.