Dec. 31, 2003

AUSTIN, Texas - ON THE AIR: Friday's game will be televised by Fox Sports Southwest in the state of Texas only (tape delay coverage in Dallas on KDFI Ch. 27 at 9;45 p.m.). Greg Lucas (play-by-play) and Reid Gettys (color) will call the action.

Due to technical difficulties, their is no radio broadcast scheduled on UTA radio (Channel 98).

ABOUT THE USF HOLIDAY CLASSIC: UTA (4-5) dropped its third straight game after losses to New Orleans (57-55) and South Alabama (56-52) at the USF Holiday Classic in Tampa, Fla., Monday and Tuesday.

Senior forward Derrick Obasohan (Houston, Texas) was named to the all-tournament team with 18 and 16 points, respectively. Obasohan made 16 of 32 field goals in the tournament and averaged 17.0 points and 5.0 rebounds.

Against UNO, UTA led throughout the game, building an 11-point lead, 22-11, in the first half and led 50-44 lead with 8:18 to play in the game before going cold down the stretch hitting just 2-of-5 field goals and 1-of-3 free throws to close out the game.

SCOUTING THE LONGHORNS: Texas comes off an 88-72 win over George Washington on Monday. Texas carries a 21-game home winning streak into Friday's game. Freshman forward P.J. Tucker tallied 27 points and 15 rebounds in the win over GW. Senior forward Brian Boddicker came off the bench to score 15 points. The Longhorns bench scored 43 points in the win. Texas is shooting 45.3% from the field, 36.1% from 3-point range and 645% from the foul line. The 'Horns outrebound the opposition by 14.5 rebound per game (50.1 to 35.6).

THE SERIES Texas leads the overall series 2-0. The Longhorns defeated UTA 76-45 on Nov. 27, 2002. Texas won 116-66 on Nov. 28, 1989. UTA is 3-40 against Big 12 members.

A LOOK AHEAD: UTA opens Southland Conference play Jan. 8 at Texas Hall against Louisiana-Monroe. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m.

MAVS MAKE PRESEASON All-SLC SQUAD: UTA senior forward Derrick Obasohan (Houston, Texas) and senior center Roy Johnson (Houston, Texas) were named to 2003-04 Preseason All-Southland Conference Team. Both averaged double figures a year ago with Obasohan ranking 13th in the SLC at 11.3 points per game and Johnson 16th at 11.1. Johnson needs 30 rebounds to join the 500-rebound club at UTA. Obasohan needs 20 points to become the 16th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points.

UTA FAVORED BY COACHES, SIDs: The University of Texas at Arlington edged out Stephen F. Austin in balloting by the Southland Conference's coaches to be the pick in the annual preseason poll, released Oct. 21. SFA received more first-place votes (4) than UT-Arlington (2), but the Mavericks won the consensus. In the poll conducted by the sports information directors, UTA and SFA tied for the top spot with 105 total points. If anything, the polls proved this year's SLC race will be balanced. Five different teams received first-place votes in the coaches poll and four in the SIDs. UTA has never won a men's basketball title since entering the league in 1964, but a 16-13 record in 2002-03 and a third-place finish in the conference with a 13-7 mark has carried over to the upcoming season.

UTA HEAD COACH Eddie McCarter: The winningest coach in UTA history, McCarter is in his 12th season as the head coach of the Mavericks. Only Tom Tinker, who coached for 23 years, including UTA's first seven as a four-year school, has paced the Mavericks bench for a longer period of time than McCarter. McCarter trails only Louisiana-Monroe's Mike Vining as the dean of the SLC coaches. McCarter is the fifth winningest coach in Southland Conference history with 138 wins at UTA. McCarter needs 10 wins to surpass Rickey Broussard of Nicholls State into fourth place. Current Louisiana-Monroe coach Mike Vining has 362 career wins at SLU. The sixth coach in UTA's 43-year, four-year history, McCarter led the Mavericks to their first 16-win season in a decade with last season's 16-13 squad that qualified for the SLC Postseason Tournament. The third-place finish in the regular season marked the best finish for the Mavericks in McCarter's tenure. McCarter has been a model of consistency during his tenure, posting double-digit wins in 10 of his 11 seasons as the head coach of the Mavericks.

FREE THROWS: UTA continues to shoot the ball well at the free throw line despite dropping to 77.5% after making 26-of-41 (63.4%) from the line the last three games. The Mavericks were ranked third in the nation at 81.1% (129-of-159) in free throws through the first six games of the year. UTA's 129 free throws made and 159 free attempts are tops in the nation through six games.

Derrick Obasohan needs 31 free throws to move into the top 10 career list, surpassing Dink Ford with 223 between 1964-66. The all-time free throw leader is Paul Renfro's 398.

UTA's 31-of-37 free throws against Texas-Pan American is the most made free throws in more than two seasons. The 31 made free throws was short of the school-record 46 versus North Texas in 1990-91. Currently four players - Chris Hairfield (83.3%), Keith Howell (83.3), Donny Beacham (81.3) and Derrick Obasohan (85.0) - are shooting better than 80% from the foul line.

Free Throw Leaders (As of Dec. 15) Team Gms. FTM FTA Pct. Bowling Green 7 110 134 82.1 Colgate 7 117 143 81.8 Texas-Arlington 6 129 159 81.1

OBASOHAN IS AWESOME Senior forward Derrick Obasohan was named to the USF Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team after averaging 17.0 points and 5.0 rebounds in losses to New Orleans and South Alabama. had an eight-game double figure scoring streak snapped with an eight-point outing against Texas-Permian Basin on Dec. 5. Obasohan rebounded with 20 points in a 91-87 win over Ouachita Baptist on Dec. 6 at Texas Hall. Obasohan is on track to crack the career top 10 list in points, 3-pointers, free throws and rebounds. He will move into the career top 10 scoring list with 73 points and will become the 16th player to reach 1,000 career points with 20.

BEATING THE SPREAD UTA's 96-53 win was the largest margin of victory since a 103-45 win over Hardin-Simmons on Dec. 29, 2001. It was the first time in 38 games the Mavericks have scored more than 90 points in a game, dating back to a 102-94 loss at Sam Houston State on Feb. 14, 2002.

HOT SHOOTING: UTA is ranked second in the Southland Conference in field goal percentage and 3-point field goal percentage and leads the league in free throw shooting. From the field, UTA is shooting 47.9% (152-of-317).

UTA is making 39.7% (29 of 73) from 3-point range and 81.1% (129-of-159) from the foul line.

CRASHING THE BOARDS: UTA outrebounded both New Orleans (36-31) and South Alabama (36-29) earlier this week. UTA had 15 offensive rebounds into 13 second-chance points in a 56-52 loss to South Alabama on Dec. 30. UTA had a season-high 40 rebounds against UT-Permian Basin on Dec. 5. Thirteen offensive rebounds helped UTA into 11 second-chance points. The Mavericks led the rebounding column 17-3 early in the game as they built a 45-24 halftime lead. UTA had been out-rebounded in three of the first four games. UTA outrebounded New Mexico State, 29-27, but was beaten 41-29 by Texas Wesleyan on Dec. 3.

THOMAS IS TREMENDOUS Sophomore forward Steven Thomas (Fort Worth, Texas) has been solid in his first nine games of the season. He recorded the Mavs first double-double of the year with 23 points and 10 rebounds at Texas-Pan American. He set career highs in points on back-to-back nights with 23 points at UTPA on Nov. 29 and 24 against Texas Wesleyan on Dec. 3. Thomas is the only player to score in double figures every game this year.

FLOYD SHOWS FLASHES OF PROMISE Freshman guard Stephen Floyd (Houston, Texas) showed why UTA coach Eddie McCarter is so high on the Houston prep standout. Floyd is averaging 12,5 points and 3.0 rebounds per game over the last four games. He started both games at the USF Holiday Classic. Floyd came off the bench for a career-high 16 points against Ouachita Baptist. He had seven points, four rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots in 12 minutes of play against UT-Permian Basin on Dec. 5.

HOWELL BROTHERS HIT THE BACKCOURT: Sophomore guard Jarrett Howell (Arlington, Texas) joined his brother Keith and the rest of the backcourt mates against Wichita State. Jarrett, who transferred from Niagara University last Christmas and sat out the fall semester before becoming eligible for the Dec. 22 game, scored five points in his Maverick debut. A prep standout at Arlington Bowie High School, Howell was a two-time all-district pick in both basketball and as a defensive back in football.

BEACHAM OUT Senior guard Donny Beacham (Dallas, Texas), who missed his third straight game with an ankle injury, is not expected to play tonight. Beacham, who missed the New Mexico State game, had a career-night with a 24-point, eight-rebound, three-assist effort against Ouachita Baptist on Dec. 6.

MAVERICK MEMOS: * The Mavericks begin their 40th season in the Southland Conference. UTA is a charter member of the conference. Then known as Arlington State College, the SLC was comprised of Abilene Christian College, Arkansas State College, Lamar State College of Technology and Trinity University. * The preseason ranking marks the first time since joining the SLC that UTA has been favored to win the league. * UTA is ranked third in the nation in free throw percentage at 81.1% (129-of-159). * Through six games, UTA had made more free throws (129) and shot more free throws (159) than any other Division I team in the nation. * Keith Howell moved to point guard with the emergence of Stephen Floyd in the starting lineup. Howell has four points and 13 rebounds the last two games after averaging 10.3 points at the shooting guard position the previous four games.