JACKSONVILLE, Florida – UT Arlington men's basketball came up just short in its finale in Jacksonville, falling 83-78 to Rhode Island (7-0) in a back-and-forth affair on Thanksgiving Day to close out the Jacksonville Classic.
 
The Mavs and Rams exchanged the lead 13 times over the course of the game. UTA had four in double figures and were led by guard Jaden Wells, who finished with 18 points, nine rebounds, two steals and a pair of assists. Forward Raysean Seamster and guard Brody Robinson finished with 13 apiece, while guard Darius Burford added 11 points with five rebounds and five assists.
 
"I'm extremely happy at the looks we got," head coach KT Turner said following the game. "I wouldn't trade it for anything, I'd put the same guys getting the same shots. I'm confident and believe in them that they'll knock those down. I felt like we had some fight, and felt like this is the first time we're playing UTA basketball. I've been saying it's going to take time and we're getting closer and closer to where we need to be."
 
UTA came out strong in the first half and fought through some early foul trouble to big man Lance Ware to get to the break trailing 44-41. UTA made a 10-2 run in the second half when trailing 46-41 to get a 51-48 lead. Rhode Island then made a run of its own, 12-2, to take a 65-55 lead.
 
"We just fought and that's all I wanted to see," Turner continued. "I told them this whole trip, all I want to see is who is going to fight, who is going to have some toughness and we figured it out. We saw that and we're just going to keep moving forward."
 
The Mavericks cut that deficit in half when guard Brandyn Talbot knocked down a corner three, and UTA got as close as 74-73 when Wells connected on his fourth triple of the day, thanks to a drive and kick by Burford for one of his five assists.
 
Unfortunately for the Mavs, they would get no closer and ultimately fell 83-78. The Mavs were dominant on the offensive glass, outrebounding the Rams 17-6 in that category, and turned those boards into 17 second-chance points, compared to five for Rhode Island.
 
UTA returns to action on Monday, Dec. 2, against Louisiana-Monroe (3-5), on the road at 6:30 p.m. from Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
 
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