Kevin Hervey’s double-double leads UT Arlington by Georgia Southern
After falling behind by 11 points seven minutes into the game, UT Arlington outscored Georgia Southern by 31 the rest of the way and dispatched the Eagles 92-72 on Saturday night at College Park Center.
UTA moved to 2-0 in the Sun Belt Conference.
“It was scary, but our guys did a good job not panicking and continuing to do what we do,” coach Scott Cross said. “We did a great job on the glass, which was a big reason why we won the game.”
The best rebounding team in Division I basketball turned in another first-class performance. They outrebounded the Eagles 47-28 and shot 51.8 percent from the field, with at least eight points from six players, including 25 from Kevin Hervey.
For the fourth straight game, the Mavericks made more than 10 3-pointers. They needed them after the start Georgia Southern had.
The Eagles couldn’t miss for the first seven minutes of the game. They made nine of their first 10 shots, including seven 3-pointers, and took an 11-point lead before UTA got going on offense.
But the Mavericks clawed their way back by going on a 13-2 run to tie it, and took the lead when Jalen Jones made a fall-away layup in the closing minutes of the first half.
That was pretty amazing. I thought his first half was his worst of the season.
UTA coach Scott Cross on Kevin Hervey
who had 22 points and 10 rebounds in the second halfAfter the early long-range barrage, UTA held the Eagles scoreless for the final 4:42 of the half, save for a buzzer-beating lay-in. They stayed relentless out of the break and went on a 32-10 run that effectively ended any hopes the Eagles had of coming back, eventually outscoring them 78-47.
Hervey recorded his seventh double-double of the season with a 25-point, 13-rebound game, and most of that came with a red-hot second half after he went into the break with just three points and three rebounds.
“That was pretty amazing. I thought his first half was his worst of the season,” Cross said. “And it was like I blinked and he just caught fire. He just go in the zone and caught fire.”
UTA remained undefeated at home this year and has won six straight games.
GEORGIA SOUTHERN (4-8): Brown 5-12 5-6 17, DeV. Boykins 0-3 0-0 0, Simmons 0-0 0-0 0, Hughes 10-17 0-1 24, Smith 3-12 2-4 10, Glenn 2-4 2-2 6, Dev. Boykins 0-3 0-2 0, Allsmiller 3-9 0-0 9, O’Connell 0-0 0-0 0, Burnell 1-3 0-0 2, Sanks 1-3 2-2 4. Totals 25-66 11-17 72.
UT ARLINGTON (11-2): Hervey 9-15 3-6 25, Bilbao 0-2 3-3 3, Neal 3-10 4-4 12, Charles 5-9 2-2 16, Jones 2-5 4-4 8, Eubanks 3-5 0-0 8, Hawkins 1-2 0-0 3, Wilson 4-5 1-2 10, Austin 0-0 0-0 0, Harris 0-0 0-0 0, Clarke 0-0 2-2 2, Pallas 1-1 1-2 3, Pope 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 29-56 20-25 92.
Halftime—UT Arlington 42-39. 3-Point Goals—Georgia Southern 11-34 (Hughes 4-8, Allsmiller 3-7, Brown 2-4, Smith 2-7, Sanks 0-1, Burnell 0-2, Dev. Boykins 0-2, DeV. Boykins 0-3), Texas-Arlington 14-31 (Charles 4-7, Hervey 4-8, Eubanks 2-3, Neal 2-8, Wilson 1-1, Hawkins 1-2, Jones 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Georgia Southern 28 (Glenn 4), Texas-Arlington 47 (Hervey 13). Assists—Georgia Southern 13 (Dev. Boykins 5), Texas-Arlington 22 (Neal 8). Total Fouls—Georgia Southern 20, Texas-Arlington 18. A—2,117.
This story was originally published January 2, 2016 at 10:10 PM with the headline "Kevin Hervey’s double-double leads UT Arlington by Georgia Southern."