It's been roughly a month since the Maverick Rambler checked in on the UT Arlington women's basketball team, much too long by any metric. They last appeared here with a 3-5 record in non-conference, closing in on the start of the regular season.
After getting a quality 61-57 win at home against the Houston Cougars, the Mavs sat 2-5 against Division I competition and the Florida International Panthers sitting on the horizon to complete the WAC/CUSA scheduling agreement.
UTA would close the remaining three conference games with a couple of wins and a loss to UT San Antonio on the road. On of the wins was to the NAIA's Wiley College. UTA closed out the non-conference schedule with a 5-6 record, 3-6 against DI.
This will likely get repetitive, but graduate transfer forward Koi Love and fellow graduate student forward Avery Brittingham led the charge, got a combined 84 points and 50 rebounds in the three games.
I mentioned last post that the duo is carrying the load for UTA. And while that still was technically true in those games, senior guard Taliyah Clark (17 vs. FIU and 10 vs. UTSA), junior guard Nia Threatt (12 vs. FIU) and freshman guard Kendal Robinson (10 vs. UTSA) contributed double digit points against DI competition. That was an encouraging sign heading into conference. Brittingham and Love can score, but they would have to do it game in and out. Having a bona fide third or fourth threat on offense will take UTA to another level.
No stat captures that idea of the star pair more than UTA's three-point field goal percentage, where UTA is .231 and last in the Western Athletic Conference, an astounding .137 behind first place. Neither of the dynamic duo are prolific from three and do their damage from within 15 feet. If the three shooting improves any measurable amount as the final two months play out, UTA will have a successful season.
The Mavs opened conference with three games at College Park Center and they were against teams that finished fifth or worse in the preseason poll. The Mavericks rose to the challenge, starting WAC play 3-0 with wins over Tarleton State 87-79, Utah Tech 81-60 and Southern Utah 78-54.
As expected, Brittingham (22, 11, 16) and Love (29, 22, 18) led the way. Only Threatt was double digits more than twice and her 12 against Utah Tech beat Brittingham's 11. Other than a brief spurt in the first quarter against Utah Tech and much of the first and early second against Southern Utah, UTA controlled the tempo.
The Texans trailed early and big but were able trim the lead in the fourth. Other than that, the Mavericks looked in control most of the time. That was encouraging to see. I am not saying they will be there in the end, but championship level teams get to the top by avoiding upsets and beating who they are supposed to beat.
I mentioned early and often that Brittingham and Love have been carrying UTA. What makes them effective is that they play well together and build off each other. Brittingham hasn't been getting the weekly honors, but Love has won five of the last six Newcomer of the Week awards from the WAC. Brittingham is obviously ineligible for that honor and she did claim a Player of the Week on January 6. If this trend continues, those two will likely be top of the all-conference teams at the end of the season.
Utah Valley, who had a surprising 8-4 non-conference record, hosts UTA on Thursday, followed by a road trip to Seattle against the Redhawks. The following week is one-game affair as UTA hosts Abilene Christian. Two of the three games will be a challenge and have large implications on the standings.
It will also be a good challenge to see where the Mavericks stand in the grand scheme of conference play.
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