ARLINGTON – David Azore poured in a game-high 25 points to lead the UT Arlington men's basketball team (6-11, 2-4 Sun Belt) to a much-needed 66-56 win Thursday night over Appalachian State (9-8, 3-3 Sun Belt) inside the College Park Center.
 
Azore continued his breakout redshirt sophomore campaign by establishing a career high in 3-pointers made with four – all of which came in the first 10 minutes of the game. The Houston native was again efficient from the floor by going 9-14, and added five rebounds and a team-best four assists en route to finishing with a team-high-tying +11 plus-minus.
 
Brian Warren added 16 points while Radshad Davis closed in on what would have been his second double-double of the year with 13 points and a team-best eight rebounds.
 
After never leading in their game Monday, the Mavericks led for all but two minutes Thursday. UTA held a comfortable advantage most of the night until it got whittled down to just three, 55-52, with under four minutes remaining.
 
Then – like they have most of the year – the Mavs turned to their leading scorer down the stretch, and Azore delivered as he scored four of five points in a quick 5-0 response by UTA to go back in front by eight, 60-52, with just over two minutes showing.
 
Those two baseline finishes by Azore for all intents and purposes finished the job as UTA picked up a crucial early-season conference win to avoid falling to 1-5 in the league.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Playing its fourth conference game in a week, UTA shot just 40 percent (22-55) from the floor compared with 44 percent (11-30) for App State. The big difference for UTA came in the form of the 3-point shot – which did in the Mavs in their 66-54 loss Monday to South Alabama – as it connected on seven 3-point attempts for 21 points, while the Mountaineers went just 2-16 (13 percent) from deep.
 
UTA committed just 10 turnovers and converted 13 App State giveaways into 20 points, holding a crucial +5 advantage in that category.
 
App State was led by a double-double performance from Kendall Lewis with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Justin Forrest added 15 and James Lewis Jr. netted 10. Donovan Gregory secured 10 rebounds as the two teams finished deadlocked on the glass with 34 boards each.
 
THEY SAID IT – Head Coach Chris Ogden
"I'm just happy to get the win. It wasn't pretty at times, but I'll take an ugly win over a pretty loss any day. We're still finding ourselves, but we're getting there. We're still learning and getting better, and we want to be playing our best basketball in February and March. But I'm proud of the guys for getting the job done tonight."
 
1ST-HALF RUNDOWN
After shooting a season-worst 6-33 (18.2 percent) from 3-point range three days prior on Monday against South Alabama's zone defense, the Mavs started 3-4 from beyond the arc against App State's zone to key an early 11-6 advantage.
 
The Mavs equaled those six 3-point makes from Monday in the first 10 minutes on Thursday as Azore knocked down his career-establishing fourth and team's sixth midway through the opening stanza to extend the host's lead to double figures, 24-14, for the first time.
 
The lead eventually grew to as much as 12, 33-21, following a Davis traditional three-point play late in the frame before UTA took a 33-25 lead into the halftime break.
 
UTA shot just 37 percent (11-30) from the floor in the 1st half while App State connected at a 44-percent clip (11-25), but the Mavs committed only four turnovers and shot an efficient 6-15 from 3-point range (40 percent) to keep themselves comfortably in front for all but two minutes in the opening stanza.
 
2ND-HALF RUNDOWN
After App trimmed the UTA lead to five, 37-32, at the first media timeout of the 2nd half, the Mavs responded with a 5-0 spurt to re-create a double-figure edge, 42-32, six minutes into the period.
 
The Mavs extended that lead to 11, 49-38, a few minutes later, but the Mountaineers slowly put seven unanswered points on the board over nearly three minutes to trim their deficit to 49-45 inside eight minutes – the closest they had been since the 13-minute mark of the 1st half.
 
Warren put an end to that run with a pull-up jumper, but App and UTA traded buckets the next few trips down the floor, and the Mountaineers eventually got their deficit all the way down to one possession, 55-52, inside four minutes.
 
However, that's when Azore took over and the Mavs picked up their second Sun Belt win of the season.
 
THIS AND THAT

• After missing the previous three games with the flu, Coleman Sparling returned and played 11 minutes. The Mavs were without Patrick Mwamba for the 12th-straight game with a broken foot.
• App State is now 0-6 all-time inside the College Park Center.
• Azore has now reached double-figure points for 16-straight games since registering seven points in the season opener against UT Dallas.
• Ogden coached his 50th career game – all with UTA.
• Eight of UTA's 11 losses this year have been by eight points or less, including three Sun Belt setbacks – two of which have been by three points.
• UTA entered action having played the nation's 19th-hardest schedule, according to KenPom. Based solely off win-loss percentage, UTA has played the 14th-hardest schedule in the nation as its opponents' winning percentage is .661 (leader: West Virginia, .750).
• Despite their record, the Mavs came into Thursday as the 2nd-highest ranked Sun Belt team in the NET Rankings at #142 (Georgia State #113).

NEXT UP
Last year, UTA sat at 0-2 in the Sun Belt before defeating App State on Jan. 10 to kick-start a five-game winning streak which turned its season completely around. The Mavs will hope Thursday's result – nearly a year to the day as last season – spearheads a similar winning streak.
 
UTA will conclude its three-game homestand and play its fifth league game in 10 days on Saturday at 2 p.m. when the Mavs welcome Coastal Carolina to the College Park Center. The Chanticleers are 10-7 overall and 3-3 in the Sun Belt following a 78-66 loss at Texas State on Thursday.
   
PURCHASE TICKETS
Season tickets start as low as $99, and tickets for all home games are available by visiting UTATickets.com, calling the UTA Box Office at (817) 272-9595 or by stopping by the College Park Center during regular business hours.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For updates, behind-the-scenes photos, videos and more engaging and personal content, be sure to follow the men's basketball program on Twitter (@UTAMavsMBB), Instagram (@UTAMavsMBB) and Facebook (/UTAMavsMBB).