RUSTON – Louisiana Tech will face its first road test of the season on Saturday when the Bulldogs square off against the Mavericks of UT Arlington.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Saturday, Nov. 9 | 5 p.m. CT
Location: College Park Center (Arlington, Texas)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: LA Tech Sports Network (97.7 FM) | LA Tech Athletics App
Stats: LATechSports.com/Stats
 
ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (1-0)
LA Tech opened the 2024-25 season with a 77-50 victory over top-15 NAIA program LSU-Alexandria. With just a 4-point lead at halftime, the Bulldogs outscored the Generals, 47-24, in the second half. The Bulldogs shot 51.6 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three in the second stanza to claim its 18th straight victory in a home opener.
 
Five Bulldogs scored in double figures, led by Kaden Cooper who had a team-high 17 points and nine rebounds. After seeing limited minutes at Oklahoma last season, Cooper made the most of his first collegiate start. Other newcomers that starred in their Bulldog debut were Pittsburgh transfer Will Jeffress (13 points, six rebounds), Georgia Tech transfer Amaree Abram (10 points, 4 steals), and freshman AJ Bates (5 assists).
 
LA Tech's defense looked just as sharp against LSUA as it did last season when it was ranked seventh in the country in field goal percentage defense (39.1) and 16th in the nation in scoring defense (64.5). The Bulldogs limited the Generals to just 50 points on 29.0 percent shooting from the field. Dating back to last season, LA Tech has held 10 of its last 14 opponents to under 40 percent shooting. It also marked the 21st time the 'Dogs have held an opponent under 60 points with Talvin Hester at the helm (out of 66 games).
 
Preseason CUSA Player of the Year Daniel Batcho was his usual self in the season opener. The forward nearly matched his season averages from last season, recording 15 points (5-of-6 shooting), eight rebounds, and two blocks against LSUA. He has now scored in double figures in eight straight games going back to last season, averaging 16.9 points at a 65.1 percent clip during that span.
 
Sean Newman Jr. was also his old self as the point guard dished out a game-high eight assists while also tying his career high with seven boards and two blocks. The Honorable Mention All-CUSA selection a year ago who led CUSA in total assists (146) and assists per game (5.2) now has 20 career games (out of 33) as a Bulldog with at least five dimes (5+ in each of his last five games).
 
ABOUT UT ARLINGTON (1-0)
UT Arlington is coming off a 20-win season and a trip to the Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship game. The Maver­icks were led by first-year head coach KT Turn­er who was previously an assistant coach at Kentucky. Having finished 2023-24 with a NET ranking of 129, UTA is picked to finish second in the WAC according to the preseason poll.
 
The Mavericks opened their 2024-25 cam­paign with a dominating 90-55 victory over UNT Dallas. They are in the midst of playing three of their first four games at home. That will be followed by six straight away from home. They return just two players from last season in senior guard Brandyn Talbot and sophomore guard Kade Douglas. Meaning 13 of UTA's 15 players are fresh fraces with 11 of those coming out of the transfer portal.
 
Some of the key additions include forward/ center Lance Ware (Villanova), forwards Rayse­an Seamster (Eastern Arizona), Troy Hupstead (UMES) and Diante Smith (Nicholls), as well as guards Jaden Wells (Oklahoma Christian), Brody Robinson (Garden City CC) and Darius Burford (Illinois State).
 
Four Mavericks scored in double figures in the 90-55 win over UNT Dallas, led by guard Jaden Wells who had 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting. Right behind him was Raysean Seamster who had 19 points to go along with five boards and five assists. There was also Troy Hupstead who nearly had a double-double with nine points and a team-high 11 rebounds. UTA utilized a 20-0 run across the end of the first half and the start of the second half to pull away from the Trailblazers.
 
THE SERIES
LA Tech leads the all-time series against UT Arlington, 26-8.  The Bulldogs have won four straight meetings against the Mavericks and 12 of the last 13.  The last meeting in Arlington was Jan. 5, 2013 when LA Tech used a 10-0 run with less than three minutes left to win, 55-52.
 
LA Tech and UTA was a conference rivalry from 1972-86 when the two programs were members of the Southland Conference together, matching up twice very season.  It would not be until 2010 that the Bulldogs and Mavericks met again on the hardwood.  The two squads reconvened as league foes for one season (2012-13) as members of the Western Athletic Conference. 
 
Since then, two meetings have occurred in 2015 and 2020, both coming in Ruston.  The last time out, LA Tech defeated UTA, 76-71, in the season 2020-21 season opener.
 
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