ARLINGTON – The UT Arlington women's basketball team could not overcome an 8-0 run late in the fourth quarter as Louisiana escaped the College Park Center 62-57 on Saturday afternoon.
The loss drops the Lady Mavs to 15-6 overall and 9-3 in the Sun Belt, dropping into second place, just a half a game behind Troy.
Senior
Terryn Milton scored 16 points with nine rebounds and four assists, while senior
De'Sha Benjamin added 13 points, five rebounds, and five steals. Senior
Starr Jacobs added 12 points and six rebounds, while senior
Katie Ferrell had five points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. Senior
Claire Chastain added seven points and five blocks.
Makayia Hallmon led Louisiana with 17 points and two steals, while Lanay Wheaton added 12 points and five boards. Ty'Reona Doucet had 10 points, 14 rebounds, and three steals, while Destiny Rice poured in 10 points.
The Lady Mavs got off to a quick start as they jumped out to a 12-4 lead in the first five minutes behind points from five different Lady Mavs. However, UTA would go scoreless for the remaining 4:53 of the first quarter as the game quickly turned into a defensive battle with UTA leading 12-11 after one.
That carried over into the second quarter as the drought finally ended at the 9:06 mark on a Milton jumper to go ahead 14-12. Points came at a premium throughout the second quarter as neither team could get any rhythm whatsoever. Jacobs got a steal and a fastbreak bucket with 38 seconds to play to push the lead to three, but a buzzer-beating fadeaway jumper from Hallmon cut it to 23-22 at the break.
Louisiana was the aggressor in the third quarter, using a 7-0 run to take a four point lead at 31-27 before UTA turned it on in the final three minutes of the quarter to push back ahead, thanks in part to a breakaway lay-up, plus the basket, from Jacobs to retake the lead. UTA built a 38-34 lead behind points from Milton and
Emma Halverson, but again Louisiana got a bucket right before the buzzer to make it a 38-36 game going into the fourth.
The offenses came alive in the fourth as UTA held their two point lead at 43-41. However, a 7-0 run from Louisiana, thanks to missed free throws and turnovers, gave the Ragin' Cajuns their largest lead at 48-43. UTA battled back and scored six of the next eight points to cut it back to one at 50-49 with 2:35 to play.
However, Louisiana took advantage of UTA poor shooting and turnovers to go on a massive 8-0 run and build their lead to 58-49 with 47 seconds to play. The never-say-die Lady Mavs found a way to cut it back to three points with eight seconds to play after a Ferrell 3-pointer, but Louisiana was too good at the line as they closed the game out and took the 62-57 win.
BOX SCORE NUGGETS
- The Lady Mavs were abysmal at the free throw line on Saturday afternoon, shooting a season-low 6 of 16.
- UTA also finished with 17 turnovers on the afternoon to only 15 assists. They are 1-5 with a negative assist-turnover ratio.
- Louisiana shot 8 of 12 from the field in the fourth quarter and 8 of 13 from the free throw line, enough to close out the win.
- UTA outrebounded Louisiana, 43-46, including 15 offensive boards. It is the first time they have lost this season when outrebounding their opponent.
- In the final 2:35 of the game, UTA was 3 of 11 from the field.
- The game saw 10 lead changes and seven ties.
NOTABLES
- UTA saw their six game winning streak snapped.
- Senior Claire Chastain's five blocks are a new career-high.
- Senior Katie Ferrell had four assists in the first five minutes of the contest. She finished with seven.
- The Lady Mavs shot 24 of 63 (.381) from the field, ending a string of eight straight games shooting 40% or better.
- It is only Louisiana's second win inside the CPC since it opened. The Cajuns have now won two of the last three meetings.
- The 17 3-pointer is the most the Lady Mavs have taken in a game since Jan. 15 against Georgia Southern.
QUOTABLES
"Give credit to Louisiana, they came in and needed a win and their gameplay was very good. We self destructed ourselves today. We missed crucial free throws and missed a lot of shots around the rim. We still have a lot of basketball to play. It's a good time for us to refocus on Coastal." -
Shereka Wright
"It's basketball. You stumble upon bumps on the road in your journey. It's about the bounce back and your focus and what you take and learn from the loss. We're taking it one game at a time. I know our coaches are going to prepare us the best way possible and we will be ready." -
Claire Chastain
NEXT UP
UTA will be back next Saturday as they hit their final road game of the regular season, heading to the east coast and taking on Coastal Carolina. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. CT.
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).
