I don't know how to start this post, (this sentence is the third one I've typed trying to open this post, so hopefully it will be the keeper) so I'll start with the facts of the 2016 UT Arlington baseball season.
I'll begin with the statistical rankings. UTA is currently second in the SBC in team batting average at .295. They have been number one a good portion of the year. There team ERA is sixth, exactly in the middle of the SBC at 4.05. In theory a good offense and decent pitching should have a better showing in the standings, but UTA is in a tie for seventh, with the team they are tied with having the tiebreaker.
The offense is in the top half of every statistical category except home runs (dead last), walks, hit by pitch and sac bunts. They are at least fifth or better in the other 17 categories the Sun Belt Conference keeps. The pitching is not as good in terms of depth, as Joel Kuhnel, Kadon Simmons and Jacob Moreland have really brought the ERA down. They are literally middle of the pack in everything with the biggest outlier being they don't get many strikeouts, nor walk many batters.
UTA is 20-17 overall and 6-9 in the Sun Belt Conference. In something of a repeating pattern of the past few years, UTA is beating the top teams with wins over TCU (RPI #28), Oklahoma State (RPI #41), Baylor (RPI #79) and Louisiana Tech (RPI #90). They are also having some real head-scratchers. UTA has won only two SBC series at this point and lost three, with one being a sweep. Two of those losses are to teams UTA should have beat at home, ULM and Georgia Southern.
Monday, April 18, 2016
Sunday, April 17, 2016
End of the Road
What a season it was. I know it has been a while since the mens basketball season ended on March 24th to now. Apologies for that as I felt a bit withdrawn after the NJIT loss, a school that I believe UT Arlington would beat five more times if they played five games. More than anything, it was the big lead that turned into a loss that had me in retreat.
But make no mistake, the season was a resounding success. For the first time I can remember, UTA had a great season, but it is a foundational one as well, giving optimism to next season. The future is brighter than ever.
The Mavs tied a program high for wins in a year with 24. The last time that was accomplished was in 2011/12 when the Mavericks claimed their first outright Southland Conference championship in their last year in the conference they founded almost 50 years earlier. Their 13 wins in conference play was the most since that 11/12 season too.
But make no mistake, the season was a resounding success. For the first time I can remember, UTA had a great season, but it is a foundational one as well, giving optimism to next season. The future is brighter than ever.
The Mavs tied a program high for wins in a year with 24. The last time that was accomplished was in 2011/12 when the Mavericks claimed their first outright Southland Conference championship in their last year in the conference they founded almost 50 years earlier. Their 13 wins in conference play was the most since that 11/12 season too.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
CIT Quarterfinals
Last post, I previewed UTA's first round opponent in the CollegeInsiders.com tournament and ended the post with:
It did end up as a big win, with the Mavericks defeating Savannah State 75-59. The team played very well in all facets of the game, as well as for most of the game. There was a stretch in the first half where SSU almost tied the game, and at the end, once the contest was well decided, but UTA did very, very well otherwise in earning the program's first postseason victory.
As a team with an RPI in the top three of the remaining teams in the tournament, UTA was given a second round bye into the quarterfinals. Their opponent was announced Monday. The New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders.
I see two possible outcomes, either a big UTA win or a close UTA loss. Either way, it is fun to talk Maverick basketball after the conference tournament.
It did end up as a big win, with the Mavericks defeating Savannah State 75-59. The team played very well in all facets of the game, as well as for most of the game. There was a stretch in the first half where SSU almost tied the game, and at the end, once the contest was well decided, but UTA did very, very well otherwise in earning the program's first postseason victory.
As a team with an RPI in the top three of the remaining teams in the tournament, UTA was given a second round bye into the quarterfinals. Their opponent was announced Monday. The New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders.
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
CIT Bound
With the regular season over, the UT-Arlington men's basketball program had high hopes entering the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. After a rough stretch of four SBC loses in a row, already slim at-large chances to the NCAA tournament disappeared. There was a chance that their entire post-season possibilities could go up in flames if they didn't right the ship.
But right the ship they did, as they won eight of the next ten. Including in that streak was a win over Louisiana-Lafayette, which allowed them to jump a spot in the SBC standings. I think that would be one of the better wins of the year. It all but guaranteed a first round bye in the conference tournament as well. As it would turn out, UTA would clinch the third seed. The two losses in that streak were to the top two teams in the conference, Little Rock and Louisiana-Monroe though the last one was a tight affair.
That set the stage for the conference tournament. After getting eliminated last year by the Texas State Bobcats, UTA's in-state rival won their first round match-up, which would set up a rematch. After trailing at halftime, the Mavericks stormed back to take a 72-63 win, setting the stage for another shot at the Warhawks from Monroe. Things looked good early, as the Mavs would stake a 14-3 lead to open the affair, but that would really end the highlights, as the Mavs would end up on the short end of an 82-71 score that really wasn't that close.
For many Mav faithful, the season was over, but I knew it would go on. I didn't think an NIT invite was likely, and I certainly knew there was not going to be an NCAA invite. But I had a feeling the CollegeInsider.com Tournament, or CIT, was in the Mavs future, and that another game at College Park Center was on the horizon.
But right the ship they did, as they won eight of the next ten. Including in that streak was a win over Louisiana-Lafayette, which allowed them to jump a spot in the SBC standings. I think that would be one of the better wins of the year. It all but guaranteed a first round bye in the conference tournament as well. As it would turn out, UTA would clinch the third seed. The two losses in that streak were to the top two teams in the conference, Little Rock and Louisiana-Monroe though the last one was a tight affair.
That set the stage for the conference tournament. After getting eliminated last year by the Texas State Bobcats, UTA's in-state rival won their first round match-up, which would set up a rematch. After trailing at halftime, the Mavericks stormed back to take a 72-63 win, setting the stage for another shot at the Warhawks from Monroe. Things looked good early, as the Mavs would stake a 14-3 lead to open the affair, but that would really end the highlights, as the Mavs would end up on the short end of an 82-71 score that really wasn't that close.
For many Mav faithful, the season was over, but I knew it would go on. I didn't think an NIT invite was likely, and I certainly knew there was not going to be an NCAA invite. But I had a feeling the CollegeInsider.com Tournament, or CIT, was in the Mavs future, and that another game at College Park Center was on the horizon.
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Mavericks to Play in CPC's Biggest Week
Happy post #100!
With that out of the way, I'll dive into a topic that I rarely venture into for the 100th. Regular readers know I tread carefully into ranking subjective material. For example, rather than say the 1981 UT Arlington Men's Basketball team was the most talented ever, which is my opinion, I'd say they were one of the greatest, allowing others to their opinion of which is the greatest. I know people like lists, especially top ten, but I leave that for others to decide, at least for now.
That said, there are the slam dunks, which only the fringe can deny, like for example to 1967 football team achieved the greatest success, but those are few and far between. I think today's topic qualifies.
In its brief history, CPC has seen some big games, but there has not been the back-to-back games that have the meaning of this week. UTA sits in fourth in the Sun Belt Conference standings at 8-5. Louisiana-Monroe is a half game ahead at 9-5 and Louisiana-Lafayette is a game ahead of them at 10-4. Both teams beat UTA on their home court. The Mavericks were in the middle of a four-game losing streak and five losses in six games, most of that triggered by the loss of Kevin Hervey.
With that out of the way, I'll dive into a topic that I rarely venture into for the 100th. Regular readers know I tread carefully into ranking subjective material. For example, rather than say the 1981 UT Arlington Men's Basketball team was the most talented ever, which is my opinion, I'd say they were one of the greatest, allowing others to their opinion of which is the greatest. I know people like lists, especially top ten, but I leave that for others to decide, at least for now.
That said, there are the slam dunks, which only the fringe can deny, like for example to 1967 football team achieved the greatest success, but those are few and far between. I think today's topic qualifies.
In its brief history, CPC has seen some big games, but there has not been the back-to-back games that have the meaning of this week. UTA sits in fourth in the Sun Belt Conference standings at 8-5. Louisiana-Monroe is a half game ahead at 9-5 and Louisiana-Lafayette is a game ahead of them at 10-4. Both teams beat UTA on their home court. The Mavericks were in the middle of a four-game losing streak and five losses in six games, most of that triggered by the loss of Kevin Hervey.
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
The Inexplicable Fall
A lot has changed since this post, where I explained that UT Arlington may never had had this level of success. The men are on a three-game slide, and have lost four outof five. The women are struggling unexpectedly as well, losing five out of six, with a four-game skid in the mix.
I'll start with the men, where there's an obvious reason, but I think the slide is beyond that.
A deep pit in my stomach occurred when I found out sophomore Kevin Hervey had "tweaked" his knee in warm-ups prior to the Arkansas State game. As a guy who has torn an ACL before, I knew exactly what tweaked can lead to. Sure enough, the forefront of the Mavericks rise was out for the season.
I'll start with the men, where there's an obvious reason, but I think the slide is beyond that.
A deep pit in my stomach occurred when I found out sophomore Kevin Hervey had "tweaked" his knee in warm-ups prior to the Arkansas State game. As a guy who has torn an ACL before, I knew exactly what tweaked can lead to. Sure enough, the forefront of the Mavericks rise was out for the season.
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Metroplex Four Tourney
Once again, an idea that has been out there many-a-time made print headlines again. Sportsday's Rick Gosselin, perhaps the highest-profile person to broach the topic, argued for an annual fall tournament among DFW's four area Division 1 schools in a recent Sports Day article.
In it, he argues that other cities have successful local showcases and North Texas should too. I know UTA would be on board. My guess is so would University of North Texas. But TCU hasn't played the Mavericks in years based on the tired argument that they have nothing to gain. From what I've ascertained, SMU is the same way.
In fact, Rick Gosselin quotes that elitist-attitude in his article, and then shuts that idea down:
The idea in the last two sentences is it in a nut shell. The idea from the "bigger" programs is that playing "smaller schools" hurts the RPI if they win, and hurts recruiting if they lose, especially if it is against a school in the same recruiting footprint.
In it, he argues that other cities have successful local showcases and North Texas should too. I know UTA would be on board. My guess is so would University of North Texas. But TCU hasn't played the Mavericks in years based on the tired argument that they have nothing to gain. From what I've ascertained, SMU is the same way.
In fact, Rick Gosselin quotes that elitist-attitude in his article, and then shuts that idea down:
"We are always open to evaluating options," SMU athletic director Rick Hart said, "but our preference is to play home games and home-and-home series -- like we have with TCU -- which reward our students, fans and season-ticket holders and allow us to showcase our campus and what we believe is one of the best arenas and in-arena experiences in all of college basketball to a national audience."
It's understandable why SMU would prefer to stay at home for its games every winter and out of any local tournaments. The Mustangs have gone national and have the most to lose of the four programs. But this tournament wouldn't be about SMU. It would be about celebrating college basketball in the area. It would be about generating local interest and enthusiasm for the sport. It would be about establishing a tradition.
The idea in the last two sentences is it in a nut shell. The idea from the "bigger" programs is that playing "smaller schools" hurts the RPI if they win, and hurts recruiting if they lose, especially if it is against a school in the same recruiting footprint.
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