BYU basketball: Previewing the UT-Arlington Mavericks
BYU basketball returns to Provo with a shot at revenge looming. The UT-Arlington Mavericks are coming back to the Marriott Center after knocking the Cougars out of the NIT a year ago.
The way BYU basketball’s 2016-17 season ended was mighty sour. The Cougars were shellacked by the St. Mary’s Gaels in the West Coast Conference Tournament, then got run off their home court by the UT-Arlington Mavericks in the NIT.
Now, the Cougars have a shot at revenge for the bitter loss.
Here’s a quick look at the Mavericks.
UT-Arlington is 1-0 on the season, having defeated a familiar BYU basketball opponent: Loyola Marymount University.
The Mavericks trailed by 12 in the second half, but came roaring back to beat the Lions 85-80 in Texas.
Kevin Hervey is still the main man for the Mavericks. Last season against BYU, Hervey scored 22 points on 10-of-22 shooting and added eight rebounds. Against LMU the senior forward dropped 28 points while adding eight rebounds, four assists and three steals.
He’s a dynamic player for UT-Arlington, and a force that the Cougars will have to slow down. I think watching Yoeli Childs battle Hervey in the post will be the key matchup – and a fun one to watch at that.
But for UT-Arlington, it’s not just Hervey. The Mavericks had three other players score in double figures against LMU – all of which were seniors. So it’s clear UT-Arlington is an experienced squad.
Kaelon Wilson scored 13 points on a bad shooting night (3-of-12), 7-foot center Johnny Hamilton scored 13 in his first game after transferring from Virginia Tech and Erick Neal scored 14 points on 40 percent shooting.
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BYU basketball will have its work cut out for it on Saturday. Not only are the Mavericks 1-0, but they also picked up a huge win during exhibition play, defeating Oklahoma.
The Cougars will need to play smart and rely on steady defense to get a win an exact some revenge.
Can they do it? We’ll find out on Saturday.