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ARLINGTON — Junior Kannon Burrage posted his second 20-point game of the season, but LaMarcus Reed and Kevin Butler combined for 45 and UT Arlington held off UTSA, 67-66, in front of 6,228 fans on the opening night of the College Park Center.
The Mavericks won their 12th consecutive game to run their record to 16-5 overall and they maintained sole possession of first place in the Southland Conference West Division at 8-0. The Roadrunners fell to 14-8 (6-2 SLC) in seeing their five-game win streak snapped.
Burrage scored his 21 on 6-of-12 shooting and he also made 7-of-8 at the free-throw line in topping 20 points for the first time since a 22-point effort in the Oral Roberts victory on Nov. 15. Meanwhile, junior Melvin Johnson III added 14 points to surpass 1,000 for his career. He now has scored 1,006 in his two-plus seasons.
Reed poured in a game-high 24 points on 8-of-20 from the field, including four 3-pointers, while Butler pitched in with 21 on the strength of a 7-for-9 effort at the charity stripe.
In a game that featured nine lead changes and eight ties, UTSA used a late rally to keep the record crowd on edge.
After the Mavs took a 65-60 lead on a Reed trey from the corner at the 4:01 mark, the Roadrunners pulled to within one after a pair of free throws by senior Alex Vouyoukas and a fast-break layup by Johnson III on their next two possessions.
It remained a one-point contest for the next three minutes, as neither team could make a move until the final 35 seconds.
Butler was fouled shooting with 34.4 seconds left, but he missed both to give UTSA the ball back with the shot clock turned off and a chance to win the game.
Burrage had a jumper from the right elbow rim out and Reed grabbed the rebound. He was fouled with 15.1 ticks remaining, but missed the front end. However, Butler pulled down the offensive board and immediately was hacked. He made both to give the Mavericks a three-point advantage with 13.7 on the clock.
After a UTSA timeout, Johnson III had an open look at a three from the right wing, but it rimmed out. Sophomore Jeromie Hill’s tap-in at the buzzer was good but not enough to force overtime.
UTSA forced 23 turnovers, 15 via steals to tie a season high, and it converted those miscues into 23 points. The Roadrunners also received 29 points off the bench, but they could not overcome the cold shooting and a 46-33 deficit on the glass.
UT Arlington shot 40.4 percent (21-of-52), including 8-of-20 from long distance, and it turned 15 offensive boards into 16 second-chance points in snapping a three-game losing streak to UTSA, which struggled to just 37.1 percent (23-of-62) shooting, including 5-of-22 (22.7 percent) from behind the 3-point line.
The Roadrunners forced four early turnovers and raced out to a 9-0 lead through the first 3:34. UTSA held the Mavericks without a field goal until Bo Ingram knocked down a 3-pointer from the right wing at the 15:24 mark. Another Ingram three capped an 11-0 run and gave UTA an 11-9 lead.
The Roadrunners turned a 22-16 deficit into a 31-24 lead, as Burrage scored nine during a 15-2 stretch. The Mavericks responded by closing the half on a 16-2 run behind three 3-pointers and 12 total points from Reed over the final 5:21.
UTSA made just 2-of-9 from downtown and 10-of-28 (35.7 percent) from the floor overall in the first half and was plagued by foul trouble, as starters Hale (10), Johnson III (8) and Vouyoukas (6) played only a combined 24 minutes.
Meanwhile, Reed had 19 points and the Mavericks shot 42.9 percent and made 5-of-10 from beyond the arc to help offset foul trouble of their own.
Both teams combined to attempt 31 free throws and were whistled for 24 fouls in the half with eleven players picking up two each.
UTSA opened the second half with a 16-7 run that was finished off by a Burrage fast-break layup to grab a 49-47 advantage.
The Roadrunners will travel to Beaumont to face Lamar (14-8, 5-3 SLC) at 2 p.m. on Saturday.