ARLINGTON – The UT Arlington women's basketball team returns to the College Park Center on Saturday afternoon for a huge Sun Belt Conference match up against last season's SBC Regular Season Champion Louisiana.
 

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UT Arlington Game Notes  ///  Louisiana Game Notes

3-POINTERS

• After rolling past ULM in front of a huge crowd on Kids Day, the UT Arlington women's basketball team looks to make it seven in a row as they welcome in Louisiana on Saturday afternoon in a key match-up in Sun Belt play.
• It will be the 29th meeting between the Lady Mavs and the Ragin' Cajuns as UTA has won four of the last five over Louisiana, including a thrilling 62-60 win in the Cajundome on Dec. 30, 2021. Louisiana holds a slight 15-13 advantage over UTA in the overall series.
• UTA has won three straight inside the College Park Center over Louisiana and holds a 5-1 record over the Cajuns since the CPC has opened. Saturday's game ends a string of three straight in Lafayette and will be the first meeting inside the CPC since the 2019-20 season.

LAST TIME OUT: ULM

• The UT Arlington Lady Mavs made it six in a row on Thursday afternoon as they rolled past ULM for a 77-50 victory inside the College Park Center.
• UTA shot 29 of 54 (54%) from the field. It is the second time this season the Lady Mavs have shot over 50% in a game after doing so on Jan. 27 against Arkansas State.
• The Lady Mavs shot over 50% in every quarter, the first time they've done so this season.
• UTA shot a season-high 9 of 16 (.563) from behind the arc. Their nine 3-pointers are the most they've made in a game this season.
• Katie Ferrell, Camryn Hawkins, De'Sha Benjamin, and Reniya Jones all knocked down two 3-pointers each.
• Additionally, UTA held ULM to 0 of 7 from behind the arc. It is the second time they've held an opponent to no 3-pointers this season. (Troy on Jan. 8).
• Eight different Lady Mavs scored at least five points, a season-high (Jacobs, Smith, Benjamin, Chastain, Ferrell, Jones, Hawkins, Milton).
• UTA outrebounded its opponent for the fourth straight game, 39-35. They are now 7-0 when they outrebound their opponent.
• The Lady Mavs finished with 21 assists as a team. It is the third time in the last four games they have 20 or more assists. 
• Shyia Smith went for a season-high 15 points on a season-high 6 of 8 shooting to go with seven rebounds, including three offensive boards.
• After a career-high seven assists in her last game, Claire Chastain finished with five assists on the afternoon. She is averaging 6.0 per game in her last two contests.
• Senior Emma Halverson had a career-high three blocks.
• UTA has now won 15 straight over ULM and has taken the series lead for the first time since winning the first contest over ULM in the 1980-81 season. They lead the series 35-34 now.
• UTA has shot over 40 percent from the field in eight straight contests, including two games where they shot over 50 percent. They have made over 20 field goals in those contests as well.

SCOUTING LOUISIANA

• Last season's Sun Belt Regular Season Champions Louisiana looks to get back to their winning ways as they dropped a heartbreaker on Thursday night to Texas State by the score of 72-71 in overtime. The Ragin' Cajuns are 13-6 overall and 5-4 in conference play, dropping two of their last three.
• Louisiana has been in the thick of the SBC Stadings all season long, starting the year 3-1 in conference play. However, losses to App State, Little Rock, and Texas State have sent the Cajuns down to 6th place as they sit at 5-4. Louisiana will look to keep its hopes for a repeat as regular season champions alive in their meeting with UTA.
• Preseason Player of the Year Ty'Reona Doucet leads the Cajuns with 12.6 points per game and 8.6 boards. The do-it-all senior adds nearly two blocks per game as well as a steal per game. Doucet has nine double-dobules this season, good for 41st in the country.
• Louisiana has been without Preseason First Team All-SBC selection Brandi Williams as she only saw action in the first three games of the season.
• The Cajuns have an odd blend of offense as they are one of the top teams in field goal percentage, sitting 20th in the country at .455, as well as fewest turnovers, sitting 35th with only 277 (14.6 per game). However, they are in the bottom half of the league in scoring offense at only 67.4 points per game as well as beyond the arc.
• The defense is a stingy one for Louisiana as they are third in the SBC in scoring defense at 58.6 points per game and first in the conference in fewest fouls. Louisiana also holds opponents to only 36 percent shooting, good for 36th in the country.
• In the first meeting on Dec. 30, the opener in conference play for both teams, the Lady Mavs started fast and built a lead as high as 15 in the second half. However, Louisiana put together a furious comeback that fell just short as UTA took home the 62-60 victory inside the Cajundome. Starr Jacobs scored 24 points, while Camryn Hawkins had a season-high 12 points with three 3-pointers. Destiny Rice led Louisiana with 17 points, while Ty'Reona Doucet had 12 points and 11 rebounds.

HOME SWEET HOME FOR 10 YEARS
The UTA women have called the College Park Center home since February 1, 2012 when they defeated UTSA in their first contest in their new home arena, 51-40. Last Sunday, they celebrated the 10-year anniversary since the building opened. The Lady Mavs have complied a home record of 87-52 including five seasons with 10 or more wins.

Since the 2016-17 season, the Lady Mavs have been remarkable at home as they have put together an impressive 65-16 record including a 40-7 record in Sun Belt play as they have not lost more than two games inside their home arena.  

Lady Mavs Home Record
2021-22: 7-2
2020-21: 8-1
2019-20: 12-4
2018-19: 12-3
2017-18: 13-2
2016-17: 11-3
2015-16: 7-8
2014-15: 10-5
2013-14: 3-11
2012-13: 3-10
2011-12: 1-4
Total: 87-53


STARR NAMED TO NCAA STARTING 5
After being named Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week for the fourth time this season, junior Starr Jacobs earned national recognition on Wednesday as she was named to the NCAA Starting 5, a national recognition for player's outstanding performances from the previous week.

Jacobs was incredible against App State, eclipsing numerous season-highs and career-highs in the orange and blue. She finished with a season-high 33 points to go with 10 rebounds, her first double-double this season, and added four steals, three assists, and a block to lead UTA to a huge 88-79 win, moving the Lady Mavs into first place in the SBC.

Jacobs is only the fifth player ever to score 30 or more points twice in a season and her 13 made field goals tied her for the sixth-most made baskets in program history. Her 25 attempts were the third-most in school history. Her 33 points were the 10th most point scored in a single game.

In her last four contests combined, Jacobs is averaging 29.2 points per game, good for third in the country. She has totaled a 30-point game in each of the last two weekends.

It is the first time a Lady Mavs has earned this honor.

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS.... AND THE BALL
A key reason for the Lady Mavs' success this season has been protecting the basketball.

UT Arlington leads the SBC and is 36th in the country in fewest turnovers with 279 (13.9 per game). They have only turned it over 20 or more time once this season and have gone over 15 turnovers as team seven times.

UTA is first in the Sun Belt in assist-turnover ratio at 1.14 this season. In their 20 games played this season, UTA is 14-1 when they have a plus assists-turnover ratio and 11-0 overall when they have at least 15 assists or more as a team. 

The Lady Mavs are 1-4 this season when they have a negative assist-turnover ratio, including three losses by 10 points or more. The Lady Mavs have 10 or more assists as a team in 18 of 20 games this season, including 26 against App State last Sunday, the fourth-most in a single game.

Two point guards have been a key factor in protecting the basketball as Terryn Milton and Katie Ferrell are first and second in the SBC in assist-to-turnover ratio.

Milton sits at eighth in the country with a 2.68 assist-turnover ratio, while Ferrell is 30th in the nation at 2.28. In conference play, Milton has bolstered an incredible 3.2 assist-turnover ratio in conference play, easily the best in the Sun Belt.


BIG KAT RANGE
Senior Katie Ferrell has caught fire from beyond the arc as of late.

After going 2 of 18 (.111) to start the year from deep, Ferrell has gone 15 of 25 (.600) from beyond the arc and 13 of 21 (.619) in her last eight games, making at least one 3-pointer in all of those games.

Ferrell has knocked down two or more 3-pointers in four conference contests, including three 3-pointers against Georgia Southern on Jan. 15. Her recent spurt has pushed her 3-point percentage near 40% as she is 17 of 43 (.395) beyond the arc this season.


FIVE STARR
Starr Jacobs has put together an unbelievable season by every metric thus far for the Lady Mavs.

Jacobs is ninth in the country in points per game (21.0) and is on pace to become the first player in school history to average 20+ points per game in a season. She is ranked 14th nationally in field goals made (169), 20th in field goal percentage (.558), 30th in total points (420), and 29th in free throw attempts (129). She is also in the Top 100 in steals per game with 2.40.

Jacobs has scored 10 or more points in all 20 contests this season and has scored 20 or more points in 11 games this season, including two games with 30 or more points. Additionally, Jacobs has made five or more field goals in every single contest this season and shot above 50% in 15 of 20 games.

She is averaging 22.5 points per game in conference play of 92 of 174 (.529) shooting from the field.

Jacobs is now a four-time SBC Player of the Week selection with two 30 point games in the last two weekends. She scored 32 in a huge road win over Arkansas State before following that up with 33 points, 10 rebounds, four steals, three assists, and a block in the win over App State to catapult UTA into first place.

Jacobs has scattered her name all over the record book this season. She has third-most made field goals in a game (14), as well as sixth and 11th, the third most field goal attempts in a game (25), the 10th most points in a game (33), and is heading towards becoming the first player in school history to average over 20 points per game in a season.


SHARING THE ROCK
Two all-time great guards continue to make their mark in the history book as Katie Ferrell and Terryn Milton continue to climb up the all-time assist ranks.

With an assist in the third quarter against Rice on Dec. 4, 2021, Ferrell tied Terra Wallace for second all-time in career assists with 409. Ferrell moved into sole possession of second place early in the first quarter against Oklahoma State on Dec. 17, 2021.

Against #13/17 South Florida on Dec. 2, 2021, Ferrell became the third Lady Mav in school history to eclipse 400 career assists.

Ferrell will have an outside chance to become the all-time leader in assists as she is 103 behind Krystal Buchanan. She is 42 away from eclipsing 500 career assists.

Meanwhile, with her 10th assist in the fourth quarter against App State, senior Terryn Milton has moved to fourth all-time in career assists as she matches Paige Smithers-Wojciak with 366. Milton passed Smither-Wojciak with her first assists in the first quarter against ULM on Thursday.

Milton has jumped four spots in the past two months, moving from eighth all the way to fourth in the months of January and February.

Milton is 39 assists away from passing Terra Wallace and moving to third all-time, and 30 assists from eclipsing 400 career assists..

She had a season-high 10 assists against App State, putting together a masterful performance in leading to a double-double with 18 points and 10 dishes.

Milton, along with Ferrell, has become the second duo in school history from the same recruiting class to each have 300 or more assists in a career. Tamara Simmons and Shalyn Martin accomplished this feat in 2011.

Milton and Ferrell passed Simmons and Martin for the most assists by a duo in school history against Houston on Nov. 17 at 676. They became the first duo to surpass 700 combined assists in the win over UNLV on Nov. 27.

Ferrell is currently third in the SBC in assists with 4.5 per game, while Milton is fifth in the Sun Belt in assists per game with 4.2.
 

Player	Year	Assists
1. Krystal Buchanan	2001-05	561
2. Katie Ferrell	2018-pres.	458
3. Terra Wallace	2003-07	409
4. Terryn Milton	2018-pres.	370
5. Paige Smithers-Wojciakl	1982-86	366
6. Tamara Simmons	2007-11	341
7. Shalyn Martin	2007-11	334
8. Gale Haynes	1993-97	332
9. Cierra Johnson	2014-19	315
10. Carolyn Smith	1977-81	282

RED HOT SECOND HALVES
In 13 of the 15 games the Lady Mavs have won this season, big scoring second halves have been a vital piece.

UTA has outscored their opponents in all 13 of those halves, averaging 39.5 points while shooting 187 of 375 (.499) from the field.
 

OPP	FG %	PTS	RESULTS
SHSU	14-27 (.518)	39	W, 72-54
UH	13-26 (.500)	38	W, 69-66 (OT)
UNT	14-26 (.538)	39	W, 75-74 (OT)
UNLV	14-32 (.438)	41	W, 75-72
USF	11-23 (.478)	32	W, 61-56
RICE	15-30 (.500)	44	W, 73-65
ULM	13-30 (.433)	33	W, 72-56
GSU	13-29 (.448)	35	W, 82-68
TXST	16-32 (.500)	40	W, 69-67
TXST	15-34 (.441)	44	W, 72-65
ASU	21-33 (.636)	50	W, 90-87
APP	13-24 (.541)	44	W, 88-79
ULM	15-29 (.517)	35	W, 77-50
TOTAL	187-375 (.499)	513	13-0

 

UTA combined to shoot 49 of 150 (.326) and shot under 40% for the half in their four of their five losses.

ROAD WARRIORS
The Lady Mavs have been unbelievable on the road this season as they wrap up a massive road trip that saw eight of the last 10 games away from home.

During that stretch, UTA went 6-2, including an impressive 6-1 road mark in confernece play. Overall on the season, the Lady Mavs sit 8-2 overall on the road, their best mark based on winning percentage since joining the Sun Belt.

Head Coach Shereka Wright has now produced two straight seasons of winning records on the road.
 

Season	Record	Win %
2021-22	8-2	.800
2020-21	5-4	.555
2019-20	9-4	.692
2018-19	12-4	.750
2017-18	5-9	.357
2016-17	9-5	.642
2015-16	8-7	.533
2014-15	7-7	.500
2013-14	1-14	.066

 

With a win over Coastal Carolina on the road on Feb. 19, UTA would put together the best road record in program history.
 

AMONG THE ELITE
UTA has been one of the top teams in the Sun Belt Conference year in and year out since joining the league in 2013-14. The Lady Mavs have been .500 or better every year except their very first season and have currently won 10 or more conference games in seven straight seasons, a conference-leading mark they hold with Troy.

1. Little Rock: 118
2. Troy: 111
3. UTA: 99
4. Arkansas State: 86
5. Louisiana: 84
    Texas State: 84
7. South Alabama: 63
8. Georgia State: 60
    App State: 60
10. Coastal Carolina: 44
11. Georgia Southern: 36
12. ULM: 31 

FOLLOW ALONG
For updates, behind-the-scenes photos, videos and more engaging and personal content, be sure to follow the women's basketball program on Twitter (@UTAMavsWBB), Instagram (@UTAMavsWBB) and Facebook (/UTAMavsWBB).