ARLINGTON – The UT Arlington men's basketball team let a 2nd-half lead slip away as the Mavericks dropped a 74-66 decision to California Baptist Wednesday night inside the College Park Center.
 
Holding a 42-37 lead at the 13-minute mark of the 2nd half, UTA mustered just three points over the ensuing six minutes as CBU used an 11-0 surge as part of a larger 15-3 run to take control of the contest, 52-45.
 
From there, the Mavs could get no closer than two, 52-50, with 6+ minutes remaining after a Shemar Wilson traditional and-1 finish. Following that conversion by Wilson, CBU's Taran Armstrong tallied six-straight points to create a 58-50 CBU lead, which for all intents and purposes closed the door on UTA.
 
Kyron Gibson posted his second-straight 20+ point performance with 22 to lead the UTA offensive attack as the Mavs shot 50 percent (17-34) from the field in the 2nd half, but allowed the Lancers to connect at a 55-percent rate (11-20) during the same timeframe.
 
Wilson came off the bench to register 18 points and grab a game-high-tying six rebounds for the Mavs, going an efficient 7-11 from the floor while also recording two steals to represent a team high.
 
Gibson's 22-point outing is a season high by any UTA member. After having just one player reach the 20-point plateau in the first 19 games of the season, the Mavs have had a player reach that mark in now three-straight games as UTA's offense has started to come into form, but its defense has regressed.
 
UTA has now allowed three-consecutive opponents to shoot 50+ percent from the floor, representing the longest such streak of the season. CBU did so on just 43 attempts (53.5, 23-43), representing the fewest attempts by a UTA opponent this season.
 
Armstrong led CBU with 24 points, seven assists and five rebounds as the guard went 11-13 from the free-throw line to spearhead a 22-34 (65 percent) effort from the charity stripe for the Lancers; comparatively, UTA went just 6-10, marking the fewest attempts in a game this season and tying for the second-fewest conversions.
 

BOX SCORE NUGGETS

• With the loss, UTA drops to 7-15 overall and 2-7 in the WAC, while CBU improves to 13-8 and 5-3.
• Reigning WAC Freshman of the Week Chendall Weaver scored seven points and issued a team-high-tying three assists for UTA.
• Gibson matched that assist total as well.
• Montez Young Jr. continued to emerge as a presence for the Mavs with four points and a game-high-tying six rebounds.
• True freshman Brandon Walker started, and he finished with six points and three rebounds.
• Aaron Cash was held scoreless for just the second time this year, but he did corral six rebounds to represent his second most against a Division-I opponent this season.
• UTA shot 46 percent (27-59) from the floor, and posted more assists (12) than turnovers (10). The 10 giveaways were one shy of matching a season low of nine, set three times this year.
• Joe Quintana (17) and Blondeau Tchoukuiegno (12) finished as the other double-figure scorers for the Lancers.
• The 22 makes from the free-throw line for CBU were the most by a UTA opponent this year (19, Oklahoma State).
• CBU has now won five of its last six games.
• UTA utilized its ninth different starting lineup of the season: Gibson, Weaver, Pedro Castro, Cash and Walker.
• It marked the first time all year that Wilson did not start; he was the lone Mav to have started all 21 games.

QUOTABLE
"We just can't guard anyone well enough right now. Until we can sit down and guard consistently, it's going to be hard to win. We're starting to play better offensively, but our defense is holding us back now. It's frustrating, but we'll continue to get better and identify those players who will help us at both ends of the floor."
– UTA Head Coach Greg Young
 

GAME FLOW
UTA utilized a 6-0 run near the midway point of the 1st half to take either team's biggest lead to that point at five, 13-8, and the Mavs extended it to six, 16-10, after consecutive finishes at the rim from Gibson.
 
However, that edge was short-lived as the Lancers clipped off a 10-0 response – keyed by their first two 3-pointers of the night – to take an 20-16 advantage with under seven minutes to play in the opening half.
 
The CBU lead would get as big as five, 23-18, before Gibson re-tied the contest at 25-all on a triple with 1:20 remaining, but a closing 5-0 surge by the Lancers gave them a 30-25 cushion at intermission.
 
CBU connected at a 52-percent rate (12-23) from the floor in the opening stanza, while the Mavs shot it at a 40-percent clip (10-25). Nearly all other key statistics were similar, with the big differential coming in points off turnovers as CBU was +5 (11-6) in that category despite both teams committing seven giveaways.
 
UTA came out of the locker room executing at both ends, commencing the 2nd half on a 10-2 run to forge in front, 35-32, four minutes into the frame following a Wilson hook shot. After the Lancers tied things back up, 37-37, the Mavs rebutted with a 5-0 push – all from Wilson, including just his third collegiate 3-pointer – to force the visitor's into a timeout facing a 42-37 deficit.
 
Out of that timeout at the 13-minute mark, the five-point margin was flipped in favor of CBU and then some by the seven-minute juncture as the Lancers built a 52-45 lead behind the aforementioned 11-0 run and never looked back.
 
THIS AND THAT

• Five NBA scouts representing four different franchises were in attendance.
• This was the first-ever meeting between CBU and UTA. The Lancers were one of three current WAC members the Mavs had never played, with the others being Southern Utah and Utah Tech.
• Now in its fifth D-I season, CBU has never had a losing campaign and has accumulated 81 victories.
• The WAC is currently ranked by KenPom as the 12th-best conference (out of 32) in the nation.

NEXT UP
UTA will have a rare weekend off before returning to the College Park Center to face Tarleton next Wednesday, Feb. 1, at 7 p.m. The Mavs will be looking to avenge a 70-63 loss to the Texans in Stephenville on Dec. 29 to open WAC play.
 
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).