California Baptist University
12-12,5-5WAC
UT Arlington
12-13,5-6WAC
Disparity at the Free Throw Line Leads to OT Loss in Arlington
2/13/2025 5:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball
ARLINGTON, TX--- The California Baptist University men's basketball team fell in extra time on Thursday afternoon in Arlington by a final score of 82-79.
The loss drops the Lancers back to .500 in conference play at 5-5 and overall at 12-12. CBU is currently tied with Tarleton State and Seattle U for third in the standings, with the Redhawks playing later this evening in Abilene, TX.
PLAY-BY-PLAY:
CBU's offense came out with purpose, scoring on several opportunities in the paint in the early going. UTA kept themselves in the game by staying aggressive and getting CBU in early foul trouble, drawing five before the first media timeout. Foul trouble would be a central theme of the first half, with key starters such as Dominique Daniels Jr., Bradey Henige, and Aj Braun picking up multiple in the first half. Despite the foul trouble, the Lancers offense kept humming along and would open up its largest lead at 34-17 with 3:48 to play in the first half.
UTA would cut into the lead a tad before halftime, but an Adam Moussa three would give the Lancers a 39-27 lead going into the locker room. CBU shot over 50% in the first half but surrendered 19 free throw attempts and competed to just five for themselves to allow the Mavericks to hang around in the game.
The Lancer offense would get back to a 17-point lead early in the second half but would experience a cold stretch for the next eight minutes in which they would only score five points. During the run, the Mavericks would take their first lead since the early minutes of the game on a turnaround with 6:07 to play. The lead was short-lived, with Daniels Jr. coming in clutch with five straight points to keep the Mavericks at bay. UTA's momentum resurfaced over the final stretch, outscoring the Lancers 13-7 over the final few minutes to force overtime.
In the overtime period, CBU struck first with a layup from Javonte Johnson, but UTA's continued aggression allowed them to get to the charity stripe 12 times and convert nine. Martel Williams connected on a catch-and-shoot triple from the corner with 25 seconds remaining to cut the lead to one, but UTA would close the game out at the line and pick up the 82-79 victory.
STATISTICAL NOTABLES:
Johnson would be the leading scorer off the bench for CBU, scoring 15 points on three made triples in 38 minutes of action. Daniels Jr. and Braun each had 12, while Henige was one point off a career-high with 11 points on a perfect 5-5 shooting night.
The story of the game was the disparity at the free-throw line, with CBU only getting eight opportunities at the free-throw line compared to 43 for the Mavericks. UTA only shot 56% from the charity stripe but made 24 of their attempts, outscoring the Lancers by 17 in that department. CBU was dominant on the glass, which has been a growing theme for them in conference play as they would outrebound UTA 48-34, including 20-7 on the offensive glass.
NEXT: The Lancers will return to Riverside for the Homecoming Game against Utah Tech on Saturday, February 15, at 6 PM.
