Stephen F. Austin
Texas-Arlington*
UTA Too Much for 'Jacks
1/26/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 26, 2006
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Texas-Arlington's Steven Thomas scored 18 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to lead the Mavericks to a 65-59 win over the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks Thursday night in the William R. Johnson Coliseum. The defeat was SFA's second straight and leaves the Lumberjacks (9-8) with a 2-5 record in Southland Conference play.
After Texas-Arlington opened the game on a 10-2 run, SFA recovered and closed the gap quickly, taking its first lead on a layup by freshman forward Matt Kingsley at the 10:37 mark. After the teams traded a few baskets, SFA junior guard Keith Hardaway hit a 3-pointer to give the Lumberjacks a 27-26 lead with 2:26 left in the first half. Junior forward Antuane Miller followed with jump shots on consecutive possessions to put the 'Jacks up by three. Senior point guard Marcus Clark gave his team a five-point halftime lead when he took an inbounds pass with four seconds left, ran the length of the floor and hit an off-balance shot from the Mavericks' baseline as time expired.
SFA opened the second half with a layup by Miller that gave the Lumberjacks a seven-point lead. But that was as good as it would get for SFA. The Lumberjacks, hampered by foul trouble, tried numerous personnel combinations, but could not find an answer for Thomas and the Mavericks. UTA's senior forward had just two points at halftime but took full advantage of the Lumberjacks' foul woes and hit 10-of-11 free throws in the second half.
Miller finished with 14 points to lead the Lumberjacks, but he fouled out with 4:18 remaining. His replacement, Kingsley, was limited to just eight minutes in the game after picking up his fourth foul early in the second half. The Mavericks finished with a huge advantage in the free throw column. UTA hit 20-of-24 foul shots - including 15-of-16 after halftime - while the Lumberjacks went 4-for-8 from the stripe. SFA did not get to the line once in the first half.
Clark joined Miller in double figures with 13 points, as did freshman guard Josh Alexander, who scored 10. Alexander and senior forward Anthony Paez tied for the team lead in rebounding with seven boards apiece.
The Lumberjacks will try to rebound on the road Saturday when they meet Lamar. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. from the Montagne Center in Beaumont.
- SFA -
