Dec. 29, 2008

UT Arlington at Tulsa (12-29-08)

Tulsa, Oklahoma - The University of Texas at Arlington women's basketball team notched a 67-65 first round victory over host Tulsa University on Monday, December 29 at the Tulsa Select Holiday Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

With the victory, the Mavericks improved to 5-6 on the season while Tulsa drops to 3-7 overall.

Four Mavs finished in double-figures including Shalyn Martin who collected 19 points and six boards in the win.

Tulsa opened the game hitting four consecutive three-pointers to come from behind and take a 15-14 lead at the 14:50 mark. The Golden Hurricanes continued to connect on several buckets leading by as many as six points but UTA went on an 11-1 surge, making the score 26-25 with 7:30 on the clock.

It was a battle in the final minutes of the first half as the Mavericks headed into halftime with a 37-34 advantage over Tulsa.

In the early minutes of the second half, the Mavs and Golden Hurricanes went back and forth tying the game six times before UTA connected on several buckets to lead by as many as eight with 10:07 left in the game.

The Mavs maintained a steady lead the rest of the game until several costly fouls by UTA sent Tulsa to the free throw line, as they converted on six freebies, cutting the deficit to two points with 57 seconds left in the game. In the end, Martin secured the Mavericks fifth win of the season with a pair of free throws.

Erin Dixon collected 15 points while Candice Champion and Meghan Nelson each added 12 points for the Mavericks.

For the game, the Mavs finished shooting 45.5 percent from the field compared to Tulsa's 35.6 percent from the floor. UTA was outrebounded by Tulsa by a 43-31 margin but connected on 23 points off of the Golden Hurricane's 22 team turnovers.

Larrissa Williams recorded a double-double for the Golden Hurricane with a 19-point and 15-rebound performance while Tatum Beer scored 14 points.

Up next for the Mavericks is a meeting with Texas Southern tomorrow in the final day of the Tulsa Select Holiday Classic with game time set for 4 p.m.