ARLINGTON, TEXAS --- The UT Arlington women's basketball team (11-14, 5-8 WAC) will host Sam Houston (11-11, 7-5 WAC) inside the College Park Center on Thursday at 7 p.m.
PROMOS
The evening will feature a celebration of Black History Month. Prior to the game, the Bryant Elementary Choir will perform the national anthem while the Enchanted Queens Dance Team will showcase their talent at halftime. Concession vouchers will be handed out to the first 250 ARL/FSL students, and there will be a chance to win a 50-inch TV.
MATCHUP NOTES
- Despite UT Arlington just rejoining the WAC this year, the Lady Mavs will square off against Sam Houston for the 59th time in program history on Thursday with a 42-16 advantage in the all-time series. The programs last met a season ago on Nov. 13 with UTA producing a 72-54 victory. Prior to that, the teams had not met in nearly 10 years (2/8/12), and this will be just the third all-time meeting in the College Park Center. The series, which dates back to a 58-57 win by UT Arlington on Feb. 22, 1975, has featured a pair of overtime games - a 61-56 UTA win on Feb. 1, 1980 and a 77-75 Sam Houston win on Jan. 23, 2010. Both of those matchups were in Huntsville.
- In fact, the Lady Mavs have only met five other schools more than Sam Houston all-time.
- Texas State - 79
- Louisiana Monroe - 69
- Stephen F. Austin - 67
- UTSA - 62
- North Texas - 61
- Sam Houston - 58
- McNeese - 58
- Northwestern State - 54
- Southern Methodist - 42
- Starr Jacobs, who is the only player in the country averaging at least 16 points, seven rebounds, three steals and 2.5 assists per game, enters Saturday just five points shy of becoming the 20th UT Arlington women's basketball player to reach 1,000 points in her NCAA career. It will be just her 54th career game after a pair of seasons at Temple College, a Division I JUCO. Should she eclipse the milestone at any point this year, she will be the fastest Lady Mav to 1,000 points as no one previously has scored that many in just two seasons of play. In fact, she is currently tied with Dani Galbreath (1991-92, 1993-94) for the most points over a two-year career, and Galbreath produced her total in 56 games.
- Starr Jacobs has a WAC-best six double-doubles in conference play alone, which is two more than second-place (Sam Houston's Madelyn Batista). Those two lead a group of six WAC players with at least three in conference play.
- Kayla White, who has scored 20-or-more points in three consecutive and four of the past five games, is currently tied with Southern Utah's Cherita Daugherty for the most 20-point performances in WAC play this year with five. A total of six players have at least four while Sydnee Kemp leads Sam Houston with two.
- Kayla White, who has averaged 20.2 points over the past five games, has elevated herself to fourth in the WAC in PPG in conference play at 16 per contest, thus giving the Lady Mavs two within the top four along with first-place Starr Jacobs (17.6 PPG).
- In addition to her first-place standing among the WAC's top scorers, Starr Jacobs leads all conference players in steals per game (3.54) and offensive rebounds per game (3.69) against WAC opponents. Additionally, she ranks third in rebounds per game (9.0) and sixth in field goal percentage (.472).
- Shyia Smith had her 36-game streak of consecutive starts - dating back to Jan. 20, 2022 against Texas State - snapped in the win over Southern Utah (2/6). The senior forward, who has now missed the past three games due to injury, was the only remaining Lady Mav to start every game this year.
- Jireh Washington returned to the lineup on Saturday against Seattle after missing four games due to injury and tallied 14 points, four rebounds and three assists. She has produced at least 10 points, five rebounds and five assists in a game three times this year.
- The Lady Mavs tied a program record with 34 points in the fourth quarter at Tarleton on Jan. 14, a quarter-scoring record that has been achieved twice prior since the NCAA switched to the non-half format prior to the 2015-16 season.
- In the Jan. 14 win over Tarleton, Shyia Smith made 10-of-11 from the foul line to tie Taleyah Jones for the team's single-game season-high for made free throws. Jones went 10-of-10 against Texas A&M - Texarkana on Dec. 11.
- De'Sha Benjamin, who had a season-high 17 points in the road win over UTRGV, and Kamaria Gipson, who had a career-high 14 points in the team's road win over Tarleton, achieved both of their highs in the first half alone before going scoreless in the second half of each contest.
- Kamaria Gipson is shooting a career-best .553 (47-of-85) from the field this year, including a .571 (24-of-42) performance in conference play.
- In WAC play, UT Arlington is 3-2 in single-digit games.
A STARR BEYOND ARLINGTON
Senior forward
Starr Jacobs had quite the debut last year in her first season as a Lady Mav after a WBCA All-American JUCO career at Temple College, earning Sun Belt Player of the Year recognition along with becoming a four-time SBC Player of the Week, landing a spot on the NCAA's Starting 5 (2/9) and being named First Team All-Texas and Dave Campbell's Texas Junior of the Year.
In 2021-22, Jacobs was:
- The only player in the nation to average at least 21 points, two steals and 1.5 assists per game while shooting at least 50 percent from the field.
- One of just two players nationally along with DePaul's Aneesah Morrow to average at least 21 points, two steals and shoot at least 50 percent from the field.
- One of two players along with Michigan's Naz Hillmon to average 21 points, 1.5 assists and shoot at least 50 percent from the field.
Jacobs carried that momentum over this year, most recently earning WAC Player of the Week recognition. Earlier, she was named the WAC's Preseason Player of the Year by the media and ESPN.com while becoming the first player in program history to be named to the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Preseason Watch List.
And so far, Jacobs has produced again this year. She is/has:
- The only player in the country averaging at least 16 points, seven rebounds, three steals and 2.5 assists per game
- One of just two players along with Niagara's Aaliyah Parker to average at least 16 points, seven rebounds and three steals per game
- Double-figure scoring in 23 of 25 games
- Conference-best six double-doubles in WAC play (eight overall)
- Four games with 20-plus points, including a season-best 29 against Toledo
- Leads team in scoring, rebounding and steals per game while ranking second in assists
FIRST 20
The Lady Mavs are 6-2 in games leading at the half this year and 5-12 in games they're trailing after 20 minutes. Most recently, they defeated Seattle on the road after leading by nine at the half.
1-2 PUNCH
Fifth-year guard
Kayla White, who eclipsed 1,400 career points on Saturday with her season-high 23 against Seattle, has had a tremendous start to the season after transferring in from Southern Methodist, forming a nice 1-2 punch with
Starr Jacobs. The team's second-leading scorer at 14.6 per game, she leads the Lady Mavs in 3-point percentage (.368) while ranking second in minutes per game (29.3) and field goals made (123).
HEATING BACK UP
After missing nine total games due to injuries, fifth-year point guard
Jireh Washington returned to the lineup Saturday against Seattle with 13 points, four rebounds and three assists. At the time of her initial injury against Toledo on Nov. 26, the Arkansas State transfer was the team's leader in scoring, assists and steals. In her first two games back - Arizona (12/21) and California Baptist (12/29), she totaled 12 points, six in each outing. On Dec. 31, she returned to the starting lineup and averaged 10.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, four assists and 1.3 steals before missing four more games due to an injury.
ONE OF 12
In the season opener against Texas Southern,
Jireh Washington registered 11 assists, which was just the 12th time a player has notched that many in a game in program history.
DECEMBER TO REMEMBER
Freshman guard
Taleyah Jones finished as the team's third-leading scorer in the month of December with 11.6 per contest behind
Starr Jacobs (15 PPG) and
Kayla White (13 PPG). On top of that, she was a team-best 7-of-17 (.412) from long distance in the month. She had a 12-point outing against No. 16 Arizona, which followed an explosive performance against Texas A&M - Texarkana where she became the 11th freshman in NCAA Division I play this year to score at least 30 points in a game.
MILESTONE WATCH
Starr Jacobs
5 points shy of 1,000 in her career at UT Arlington
Shyia Smith
7 steals away from 100 in her NCAA career
3 assists away from 100 in her NCAA career
Jireh Washington
19 made field goals away from 500 in her NCAA career
17 assists away from 400 in her NCAA career
8 steals away from 200 in her NCAA career
Kayla White
96 points away from 1,500 in her NCAA career
De'Sha Benjamin
14 points away from 800 in her NCAA career
5 assists away from 100 in her NCAA career
1 made 3-point field goal away from 100 in her NCAA career
AMONG ACTIVE NCAA CAREER LEADERS
Jireh Washington and
Kayla White rank among the nation's best in multiple statistical categories. Washington is 136th among all active Division I players in scoring (1,358) and 36th in free throw attempts (503). Meanwhile, White is 115th in points (1,404) and 48th in field goal attempts (1,447).
FUN WITH NUMBERS
CAREER TOTALS
10+ POINTS IN A GAME
Jireh Washington - 73
Kayla White - 72
Starr Jacobs - 51
De'Sha Benjamin - 37
Shyia Smith - 33
Taleyah Jones - 9
Kamaria Gipson - 8
Nya Threatt - 2
Alexsyah Goudeau - 1
20+ POINTS IN A GAME
Starr Jacobs - 20
Kayla White - 16
Jireh Washington - 15
De'Sha Benjamin - 3
Shyia Smith - 2
Taleyah Jones - 1
30+ POINTS IN A GAME
Starr Jacobs - 2
Kayla White - 1
Jireh Washington - 1
Taleyah Jones - 1
10+ REBOUNDS IN A GAME
Starr Jacobs - 12
Kamaria Gipson - 6
De'Sha Benjamin - 3
Shyia Smith - 3
Jireh Washington - 2
10+ ASSISTS IN A GAME
Jireh Washington - 1
DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Starr Jacobs - 12
Kamaria Gipson - 3
Shyia Smith - 2
De'Sha Benjamin - 2
Jireh Washington - 1
CATEGORY LEADERS
PPG
Starr Jacobs – 16.2
Kayla White – 14.6
Jireh Washington – 11.7
Shyia Smith – 8.0
Taleyah Jones – 7.8
RPG
Starr Jacobs – 7.5
Shyia Smith – 5.4
Jireh Washington – 4.4
Kamaria Gipson – 3.8
De'Sha Benjamin – 3.5
APG
Jireh Washington – 4.4
Starr Jacobs – 2.6
Nya Threatt – 1.6
Kayla White – 1.4
Shyia Smith – 1.3
De'Sha Benjamin – 1.3
SPG
Starr Jacobs – 3.1
Jireh Washington – 1.9
Kayla White – 1.4
Alexsyah Goudeau – 0.9
Taleyah Jones – 0.9
BPG
Kamaria Gipson – 0.7
Shyia Smith – 0.5
Starr Jacobs – 0.4
De'Sha Benjamin – 0.4
Kayla White – 0.3
GOUDEAU STEPS UP
Alexsyah Goudeau made the first of six consecutive starts on Nov. 29, producing her first of three straight games with eight points. She also grabbed a season-best six rebounds against Baylor on Dec. 7. Most recently, the rookie poured in a season-best 15 points against Utah Tech, and she has made 11 starts this year.
SMITH COMES UP CLUTCH
Fifth-year senior
Shyia Smith made the game-winning layup with 16 seconds left in the team's 75-72 win over Texas A&M – Commerce.
CONTRIBUTIONS FROM KG
Kamaria Gipson, a third-year transfer from San Diego State, registered the second double-double of her UT Arlington career, and third of her NCAA career, last Thursday at Utah Valley. It was also her fifth double-digit scoring effort of the season, including her career high established against Tarleton (1/14). Earlier this year, she helped the Lady Mavs produce wins against Texas Southern (11/7) and Texas A&M - Commerce (11/12) behind back-to-back double-digit scoring performances, including her first double-double as a Lady Mav on the 12th. She also mixed in a 10-rebound performance against nationally-ranked Baylor (12/7).
AMONG THE NATIONAL LEADERS
The Lady Mavs rank among the top 60 teams nationally in four categories:
- Free throw attempts per game (10th, 23.00)
- Free throws made per game (18th, 15.40)
- Steals per game (36th, 10.0)
- Turnovers forced per game (53rd, 18.76)
Individually,
Starr Jacobs has ascended to the top 75 nationally in five categories.
- Total steals (7th, 78)
- Steals per game (11th, 3.12)
- Total free throw attempts (26th, 148)
- Total free throws made (49th, 102)
- Total field goals made (64th, 152)
EXPERIENCED LINEUP
Despite injuries getting in the way at times, UT Arlington has used the below lineup 10 times this year. It is a group that has combined for 509 games of NCAA Division I experience, and that total becomes 551 games of collegiate experience if you include the 42 games that Jacobs played at the JUCO level.
SHORT TURNAROUND
UT Arlington opened WAC play Dec. 29 with an 8 p.m. CT game at California Baptist. Following a 1:59 a.m. CT flight out that same night, the team arrived back at the CPC around 5 a.m. and began prep later that day for their Dec. 31 game against Tarleton.
HOME SWEET HOME
The UTA women have won six of 11 games to open this season inside the College Park Center, where they have called home since Feb. 1, 2012. Since then, the Lady Mavs have compiled a record of 94-60 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 70-22 record.
| 2022-23 |
6-5 |
| 2021-22 |
8-4 |
| 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 |
94-60 |
BACK TO THE WAC
UT Arlington is back in the WAC after previously spending one year as a member of the conference in the 2012-13 season, where they finished 4-14 in league play and tied Texas State for ninth in the regular season standings. UTA spent the past nine seasons (2013-22) as a member of the Sun Belt Conference, where they are the reigning tournament champion. Prior to their initial WAC tenure, the Lady Mavs were a 48-year member of the Southland Conference (1963-2012) – of which it was a founding member.
New Mexico State, UTA and Seattle U are the only three current WAC schools that were also members of the league in 2012-13.
2012-13 WAC Membership (Current Affiliation)
Denver (Summit)
Idaho (Big Sky)
Louisiana Tech (Conference USA)
New Mexico State
San Jose State (Mountain West)
Seattle U
Texas State (Sun Belt)
Utah State (Mountain West)
UT Arlington
UTSA (Conference USA)
2022-23 WAC Membership
Abilene Christian
California Baptist
Grand Canyon
New Mexico State
Sam Houston
Seattle U
Southern Utah
Stephen F. Austin
Tarleton
UT Arlington
UT Rio Grande Valley
Utah Tech
Utah Valley
CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SLATE
The UT Arlington women's basketball team wrapped up a tough non-conference slate on Dec. 21 with a loss to No. 16 Arizona. It was the third nationally-ranked team the Lady Mavs played as UTA fell to No. 16 Oklahoma on Nov. 20 and No. 19 Baylor on Dec. 7.
On top of that, UTA went on the road and nearly upset Kansas, trailing twice by just one late in the fourth quarter, the second time which came on a layup from
Starr Jacobs with 3:36 left before falling 79-74. Then, in the Maggie Dixon Classic against the Sooners, the Lady Mavs took a 74-73 lead with four minutes left in the game on a jumper from
Jireh Washington, but Oklahoma went on a 5-0 run and closed the game on a 16-6 spurt.
On Nov. 26 in Daytona Beach, UT Arlington lost to Toledo, a team that defeated No. 19 Michigan on Dec. 8. Last year, the Rockets won the regular season MAC title with a 19-1 record before finishing the season 29-6.
UT ARLINGTON BY THE NUMBERS
Milestone Wins
100th - 65-50 vs Texas Woman's – 11/13/79
200th - 64-51 vs Texas Wesleyan – 2/2/87
300th - 73-55 vs Nicholls State – 2/15/96
400th - 67-63 at Louisiana Monroe – 2/1/03
500th - 54-41 vs TAMUCC – 1/26/08
600th - 65-58 vs App. State – 2/13/16
700th - 60-40 at Arkansas State – 2/26/21
By The Decade
1972-82: 147-135 (.521)
1982-92: 109-165 (.398)
1992-02: 135-141 (.489)
2002-12: 169-132 (.562)
2012-22: 161-131 (.551)
2022-present: 11-14 (.440)
Overall: 732-718 (.505)
OPENING WITH HISTORIC OFFENSE
The 102 points that UT Arlington scored in the season-opening win over Texas Southern represented the most the program has ever produced in a season opener and fell just one shy of the overall single-game record. It was the eighth time the Lady Mavs have reached the century mark in 50-plus seasons of basketball. In fact, it was the most points they've scored in a game in nearly 25 years dating back to a 102-point outing against UTRGV on Jan. 26, 1998.
RESTOCKING THE PANTRY
While UT Arlington returns seven players from last year's roster (six that saw action), the Lady Mavs are replacing six players, highlighted by three key outgoing transfers -
Terryn Milton (Oklahoma State),
Claire Chastain (Oklahoma State) and
Katie Ferrell (Texas Tech).
Milton, Chastain and Ferrell comprised UTA's second, fourth and sixth leading scorers while Ferrell, Milton and Chastain were the second, third and fourth top rebounders, respectively. If that isn't enough, Milton, Ferrell and Chastain - in that order - were the top three assist producers on the team.
In total, UT Arlington is replacing over 40 percent of its contributions in five key categories:
Scoring - 44.5 percent
Rebounding - 60.5 percent
Assists - 75.2 percent
Steals - 52.5 percent
Blocks - 66.7 percent
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