ARLINGTON – The UT Arlington men's basketball team will host its 2022-23 home finale on Saturday, Feb. 25, as part of Grad Day when the Mavericks face off against Utah Tech at 2 p.m. inside the College Park Center.

Prior to the start of the game, UTA will honor departing graduate students Pedro Castro and Aaron Cash.
 

GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Game 29	UT Arlington (10-18, 5-10 WAC) vs. Utah Tech (12-16, 4-11 WAC)
Date | Time	Saturday, Feb. 25 | 2 p.m.
Location	College Park Center (7,000)
Tickets	UTATickets.com
Video	ESPN+
Audio	620 AM | Varsity Network App
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Game Notes	UT Arlington | Utah Tech | WAC

GAMEDAY PROMOS

• National Anthem Performance
  • Ashworth Elementary Mustang Chorale
• Halftime Recognition
  • Men's Basketball Alumni & 2008 NCAA Tournament Team
• Tickets
  • Free ticket for Boy Scouts using code BOYSCOUT at utatickets.com/promo (additional tickets at $4).
  • Flash Sale – $3 ticket using code ONEPLAYONEDAY at utatickets.com/promo.
  • 1 ticket & 1 nacho or popcorn for $10 for TRIO groups using code TRIO at utatickets.com/promo.

OPENING TIP(s)

• UTA is coming off an 86-76 setback on Thursday to Southern Utah – which is currently one game out of 1st place in the WAC – as the Mavs have now alternated losses and wins for the last seven games: L, W, L, W, L, W, L. The 86 points were the most given up by UTA this year, and also represented just the second time since 2015 that the Mavs have allowed an opponent to score 86+ in a home regulation affair (91-86 win over Louisiana on Jan. 15, 2021).
   
• Conversely, the 76 points scored by UTA marked the second-straight game of tallying 75+. Prior to Royce Johnson taking over as interim head coach three games ago, the Mavs had scored at least 75 points against a Division-I team just once all season. Additionally, UTA has now made double-figure 3-pointers in all three games he has overseen; prior to that the Mavs reached that threshold just once this year versus a D-I foe.
   
• UTA has seven D-I triumphs this year, and three have been of the NET Quad 2 variety. The Mavs are the only team in the nation with single-digit D-I victories overall and three Quad 2 wins. Additionally, the only team in the country with more Quad 2 wins that has a losing record is Washington State with four (14-15 overall).
   
• On Monday, Chendall Weaver won his fourth WAC Freshman of the Week honor in the last seven opportunities (Jan. 9, Jan. 23, Feb. 6, Feb. 20) after averaging a team-best 15.5 points to go along with 6.5 rebounds and three assists in UTA's two games. He is the only player in the WAC to have collected four weekly honors (either Player or Freshman of the Week). California Baptist's Taran Armstrong holds the WAC record for Freshman of the Week honors with five set last year. In total, UTA has a conference-high five Freshman of the Week recognitions this season thanks to Brandon Walker collecting the designation on Dec. 5.
   
• The Mavs rank 11th in the nation in offensive rebounding at 13 per game (1st: Saint Peter's, 13.8). Shemar Wilson is leading the charge as the sophomore is 9th nationally with 3.6 offensive rebounds an outing. He has registered three games of 8+ offensive boards this year – tied for the 3rd most in the country against D-I opponents (leaders: four games).
   
• Wilson (team bests of 10.9 PPG and 7.8 RPG) has not played in UTA's last four games, and he remains questionable for Saturday's contest with a hip injury. Wilson is responsible for all five of UTA's double-doubles this year, which are tied for the 2nd most in the WAC behind Utah Valley's Aziz Bandaogo with 14.

TWEETABLES

1) Brandyn Talbot has made seven 3-pointers in the last three games; in the previous 13 games combined he had made seven. He is coming off a 12-point performance on Thursday – his first double-digit outing since Nov. 22.
 
2) After starting WAC play 0-5, UTA is 5-5 in its last 10 league games, and four of those setbacks have been by 10 points or less.
 
3) The loss on Thursday marked just the sixth time since 2010 that UTA had scored at least 76 points in a home regulation game and lost.
 
4) After connecting at just 26.4 percent from 3-point range against non-conference D-I opponents, UTA is shooting 36.3 percent in WAC play, keyed by Aaron Cash (38.7 to 43.9), Weaver (20.0 to 41.9) and Kyron Gibson (36.4 to 38.4).
 
5) The Mavs have had 11 different players reach double-figure points in a game this year, and also have had eight different leading scorers – the 3rd most in the nation behind only James Madison and Longwood with nine each.

BIG ROAD WIN

UTA's 75-70 road win over Stephen F. Austin last Saturday gave the Mavs their program-record third NET Quad 2 win of the season (San Francisco and Sam Houston), and it was also interim head coach 'Snoop' Johnson's first career win at the collegiate level in just his second game.

ABOUT THE MATCHUP

• This will be UTA's first-ever meeting with Utah Tech, which officially changed its name from Dixie State this past summer. The Trailblazers are coming off an 88-81 win at UT Rio Grande Valley on Thursday as Cameron Gooden became the ninth member of the program's 1,000-point club as part of a 26-point outing.
   
• Gooden – a Frisco product from Lone Star High School – leads a trio of Utah Tech double-figure scorers this year at 16 per game; he's joined by Isaiah Pope (13.1) and Jacob Nicolds (10.1). Tanner Christian (9.9) is right behind, and he paces the Trailblazers in rebounding at 6.9.
   
• Two of Utah Tech's four WAC wins have come against UTRGV; however, the Trailblazers do own a victory over Southern Utah, 86-79, on Feb. 4.
   
• Utah Tech is in its third season as a D-I member and is in the midst of its required four-year NCAA reclassification period. The Trailblazers (like Tarleton) are eligible to compete in the WAC Tournament, but are ineligible for the NCAA Tournament due to the NCAA mandate.
   
• The Trailblazers joined the NCAA ranks at the D-II level in 2006 after being a junior college since 1952. Utah Tech made nine-straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2010-20 before making the jump to the D-I ranks.

WAC STANDINGS

Click Here To View The Updated WAC Standings
 
New Mexico State has suspended the remainder of its season (more info below), meaning that the remaining 12 teams have qualified for the WAC Tournament. The résumé-seeding system will now be used to determine how teams are seeded at the WAC Tournament (denoted by WAC Points in this link; higher point total = a better seed).
 
For example, right now even though Stephen F. Austin is alone in 4th place with a 10-5 league record, the Lumberjacks would be the #6 seed due to accumulating just 1.44 points, and Seattle U (tied 5th place) would be the #4 seed (2.64 points). UTA (-4.83) would be the #12 seed despite currently sitting alone in 10th place at 5-10.
 
The WAC has sent at least two teams to the NCAA Tournament in 28 of the past 46 seasons. In an effort to continue enhancing its at-large prospects and rewarding the best teams throughout the entire season, the résumé-seeding system was introduced.
 
It is an algorithm that rates performances against all D-I teams faced in the regular season, not just conference play. Teams receive more credit for scheduling, and beating, stronger opponents than weaker ones – particularly on the road. This should help WAC members have higher NET rankings, a key-criteria used by the NCAA Selection Committee.

WAC DEEMS NEW MEXICO STATE REMAINING GAMES FORFEITS

On Feb. 13, the WAC issued the following resolution after New Mexico State officially suspended the remainder of its 2022-23 men's basketball season on Feb. 12.
 
Each of the six remaining scheduled New Mexico State games against conference opponents, which included games at California Baptist (Feb. 11), versus and at Abilene Christian (Feb. 15 and March 1), versus UTRGV (Feb. 18), versus Grand Canyon (Feb. 22) and at Tarleton (March 6), have been deemed forfeits in regard to conference standings and seeding. The NCAA does not formally recognize forfeited games in this scenario as it pertains to one's overall record during a season, but grants conferences the right to administer forfeits for in-conference competition only for the purpose of standings and seeding.
 
Each of the listed New Mexico State opponents have immediately received corresponding conference wins in the WAC standings and will be credited with the equivalent value of a home win for each remaining game against New Mexico State in the WAC Resume Seeding System.
 
"While there is no perfect solution to this unfortunate situation, I believe we landed in the right place," WAC Commissioner Brian Thornton said. "I applaud our Athletic Directors for working collaboratively with our staff to reach this decision.
 
"We are in the midst of the best statistical season in the WAC's history, and we wanted to create the most equitable solution that did not unfairly advantage or disadvantage institutions that lost opportunities to improve their standing. Ultimately, every institution will maintain the ability to control their destiny based on the results of their remaining conference contests."
 
All 12 of the conference's remaining men's basketball programs will be seeded according to the WAC Resume Seeding System for the 2023 Hercules Tires WAC Basketball Tournament on March 6-11 in Las Vegas. The WAC's regular-season champion will be determined by the top finisher based on league winning percentage according to the traditional conference standings.

INSIDE THE DOUBLE-FIGURE SCORERS

Two years ago, UTA tied for the national lead by having 13 different players score double-figure points in a game. Last season, the Mavs had 12 different double-figure scorers – tied for the 3rd most in the nation. So far this year, UTA already has 11 different double-figure scorers.
 
Below is a list of those double-figure players, their respective season highs and how many times they have led UTA in scoring:
 
Kyron Gibson: 22 (10x – Includes 3 Ties)
Chendall Weaver: 21 (6x)
Aaron Cash: 20 (4x – Includes 3 Ties)
Taj Anderson: 19 (1x)
Shemar Wilson: 18 (5x – Includes 1 Tie)
Marion Humphrey: 17 (4x – Includes 2 Ties)
Brandon Walker: 17 (2x – Includes 1 Tie)
Brandyn Talbot: 15 (1x)
Pedro Castro: 14
Montez Young Jr.: 14
Dario Domingos: 12

BY THE NUMBERS

1: UTA picked up a 60-56 win over Horizon League preseason favorite Northern Kentucky on Nov. 22. NKU had defeated Cincinnati – picked to finish 3rd in the American Athletic Conference – two games prior by 13 points.
 
2: UTA secured its second road win of the season over a 2022 NCAA Tournament team when the Mavs took down New Mexico State, 66-55, on Jan. 14. The first came on Dec. 19 at San Francisco, 68-63.
 
2: UTA is just two wins shy of 800 all-time program victories. The Mavs are in their 64th season, with UTA's inaugural campaign taking place in 1959-60.
 
3: UTA delivered season highs against a D-I opponent in three categories in an 85-73 win over UTRGV on Jan. 19: points (85), 3-pointers made (11, tied) and assists (26).
 
7: UTA has had seven different occasions of a player grabbing 7+ offensive rebounds in a game this year: Wilson versus Hardin-Simmons (7), Nevada (7), Howard Payne (7), North Texas (8), Stephen F. Austin (8) and Utah Valley (8); Dario Domingos against Northern Kentucky (7).
 
8: Against UNT on Dec. 6, Wilson grabbed eight rebounds, and all of them were offensive. Over the last 6+ seasons – since the start of the 2016-17 campaign – he is one of only seven players nationally to secure at least eight offensive rebounds and zero defensive boards in a game.
 
10: Marion Humphrey had six steals against Southwestern on Nov. 12 to tie for the 10th most in single game program history.
 
12: Gibson passed out a season-best 12 assists versus UTRGV on Jan. 19, representing the most helpers by any WAC player in a game this year against a D-I opponent.
 
12: The WAC is currently rated as the 11th-best conference (out of 32) in the country.
 
13: UTA has used 13 different starting lineups this season, including six in the last eight games.
 
16: UTA's wire-to-wire win at San Francisco ended the Dons' 16-game home non-conference winning streak and was the Mavs' first NET Quad 2 or better non-conference win since an 89-75 victory at BYU (Quad 1) in November of 2017. Two days later, USF defeated then-#25 Arizona State, 97-60.
 
26: The 26 assists UTA issued against UTRGV were the most at home against a D-I foe in nearly six years – since the Mavs passed out 27 on Jan. 23, 2017, versus Louisiana.
 
27: UTA is the least experienced team in the WAC and 27th nationally (337th of 363) this year based off prior D-I playing experience with an average of just 0.91 years per player.
 
50: UTA allowed three-straight opponents from Jan. 19-25 to shoot at least 50 percent from the floor for the first time since 2008.
 
55: The 55 points UTA limited New Mexico State to represented just the second time in the last six seasons that the Mavs have held an opponent to 55 or fewer points on the road (52 at Arkansas State on Jan. 2, 2020). Prior to that, the last time the Mavs did it was on Dec. 16, 2016, when they permitted Bradley to score just 51.

NEXT UP

UTA will wrap up regular-season play with its third-straight Utah-based school as the Mavs face Utah Valley on Mar. 1 at 7 p.m. (CST). The road trip continues to Seattle U on Friday, Mar. 3, for a 9 p.m. (CST) tipoff.
 
The Mavs will remain in the Pacific timezone and fly directly to Las Vegas to begin preparations for the WAC Tournament, which for UTA will commence with a First Round matchup on Tuesday, Mar. 7.
 
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).