Coming off a victory against league-leading ULM, the Arkansas State University men's basketball teams looks to continue the momentum with UT Arlington visiting the Convocation Center for a 7 p.m. tip.
In his first career start, Frederic Dure sparked A-State to a 70-68 win over ULM on Saturday. Dure finished with 22 points and eight rebounds and was joined in double figures by Cameron Golden (17), Anthony Livingston (15) and Kelvin Downs (12).
The Red Wolves perimeter shot 15 percent (3-20) at UALR, but responded against ULM by shooting 49 percent (16-33).
After playing 11 games in January, the most in the month since the 1986-87 season, A-State has six games in February, tied for the fewest dating back to the 1959-60 season. The only other time A-State played six games in February was the 2000-01 season.
A-State has amassed a record of 201-201 (.500) since joining the Sun Belt Conference in the 1991-92 season. A-State is now 130-68 (.657) in home SBC games while the road record sits at 71-132 (.350).
A-State is 4-1 in league play, 6-1 on the season, when pulling down 40 or more rebounds. In four of the Red Wolves five conference wins, the opponent shot below 40 percent from the field.
The Red Wolves are 10-4 on the season when pulling down 35-plus rebounds. A-State is 9-5 when attempting fewer three-pointers in the second half compared to the first half and 9-3 when shooting a better field goal percentage than their opposition.
A-State is 2-4 this season in game two of the home-and home conference series. Under head coach John Brady, A-State is 20-26 in game two of a regular season home-and-home conference series.
ARKANSAS STATE/UT ARLINGTON SERIES HISTORY
• A-State and UT Arlington meet for the 53rd time on Thursday with the Red Wolves holding a 38-14 advantage in the series. The Mavericks raced past A-State 77-50 in the first meeting this season (Jan. 15).
• The Red Wolves carry a 22-4 record on the home floor against UT Arlington into Thursday's matchup. A-State is 2-0 against the Mavericks at the Convocation Center, an 83-60 victory last season and a 72-64 win in 1997. Overall, A-State has won seven-straight on the home court against UT Arlington, dating back to a 60-58 overtime loss on Feb. 20, 1982.
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Sean Gardner led A-State with 16 points in the first meeting, but the Red Wolves started the game 3-of-17 in the first 13 minutes. UT Arlington had four players reach double figures, led by 14 points from Johnny Hill.
• A-State swept both meetings last season with the renewal of the old Southland Conference rivalry. A-State earned an 82-66 victory at UT Arlington before defeating the Mavericks 83-60 at the Convocation Center.
SCOUTING UT ARLINGTON
• UT Arlington visits the Convocation Center holding a 15-11 record and a 9-7 mark in league play. The Mavericks dropped an 81-70 decision to Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday. UT Arlington is 3-2 in their last five games and 6-4 in the last 10.
• UT Arlington has matched their win total from last season (15) with four games to play.
• The Mavericks are led by Lonnie McClanahan who averages 11.4 points. Greg Gainey (10.3 PPG) and Johnny Hill (10.1 PPG) also average double figures. Kevin Hervey is the top-rebounder, pulling down 5.9 per game. Expect to see several substitions as UTA has 11 players averaging 10-plus minutes.
• UT Arlington shoots 43.6 percent from the field and 31.9 percent from beyond the arc. The Mavericks have shot 67.0 percent from the charity stripe thus far and average 37.2 rebounds per game. Opponents have shot 40.4 percent from the floor and 31.4 percent from long range against the Mavericks thus far.
• UTA head coach Scott Cross is in his ninth season with the Mavericks and is second all-time in wins at UTA with 152, trailing his college coach Eddie McCarter by 10 games. Cross is 152-124 in his nine seasons at UTA, the only coach with a winning record in school history.
DURE PROVIDES SPARK
• A-State head coach
John Brady informed
Frederic Dure about five minutes before Saturday's game that the junior guard would be making his first career start. Dure (Dur-A) responded with a career-night of 22 points, including the game-winning basket, and eight rebounds.
• Dure was 9-of-10 (90 percent) from the field and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Dure is the first player to shoot 80 percent or better in a game since
Ed Townsel was 7-of-8 (87.5 percent) against UT Arlington on January 2, 2014.
• With 22 points in his first career start, Dure is the second A-State player to reach that mark this season.
Anthony Livingston had 26 points in his first start, the season opener against UT Martin.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE LIVINGSTON
• Sophomore forward
Anthony Livingston has posted seven double-doubles in the last 11 games and earned Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week honors for his performances against Appalachian State and Texas State.
• With 12 double-doubles, Livingston is tied for the most in a single-season dating back to the 2005-06 season. Brandon Peterson had 12 double-doubles in the 2012-13 season and Isaac Wells had 12 in the 2005-06 campaign.
• With a 13th double-double, Livingston would tie Jeff Clifton who posted 13 double-doubles in 27 games of the 1993-94 season for A-State.
STAT TRENDS
• A-State is 10-4 this season when grabbing 35 or more rebounds. The four losses with came at Toledo (73-65), versus UALR (75-65), at Georgia Southern (65-60) and at UALR (70-57). A-State is 6-1 overall and in four of the five SBC wins the Red Wolves pulled down 40 or more rebounds.
• The Red Wolves are 9-5 when 25 or more of their points are inside the painted area. A-State is 9-6 this season when opponents score 30 or fewer points in the paint.
• The Red Wolves are 7-2 this season when earning a trip to the free throw line more than their opponents.
A COMMON THEME
• A-State enters Thursday's game with a 5-11 mark in league play and a few stats stand out when finding what went right for the four wins.
• The Red Wolves are 4-1 in league play when grabbing 40 or more rebounds. A-State is 5-1 in league play when reaching 50 points before their opponent, 9-2 on the season. The lone loss came to Appalachian State on Jan. 3.
• When opponents shoot 40 percent or below from the floor, A-State sports a 7-1 record on the year and 4-1 in league play. Georgia State (35.8 percent) is the only foe to shoot below 45 percent and defeat the Red Wolves.
PERIMETER SHOOTING
• Prior to Saturday's game, the A-State perimeter shooting had struggled, shooting 22 percent (11-49). Last Thursday at UALR, the perimeter shooters combined to go 3-of-20 (15 percent) after shooting 28 percent (8-29) at Georgia Southern.
• Saturday against ULM, the perimeter shot 48 percent (16-33).
• For the season,the Red Wolves perimeter players have shot 38 percent (310-810), including 36 percent (191-527) in conference play.
DID YOU KNOW?
• The Red Wolves have gone 124-straight games hitting a three-pointer. The last time A-State didn't hit a shot from behind the arc was Feb. 24, 2011 when North Texas held the Red Wolves 0-8 from three at the Convocation Center. A-State would win the game without needing a three-point make, 63-47.
• A-State has gone 581 games since losing a game in which it scored 90 or more points. The loss came in the 1995-96 campaign, a 101-93 loss at Jacksonville on January 22, 1996.
