RIVERSIDE, California – The Mavs hit the road for their final regular season game of the season to battle California Baptist (15-14, 8-7 WAC) on Saturday, March 8. The game tips off at 7 p.m. CT from the Fowler Events Center in Riverside, California, and will be broadcast on ESPN+, and on the radio on the Varsity App, 102.5 FM and KTNO 620 AM with the Voice of the Mavericks, Josh Sours.
“We’re mentally in a great spot,” head coach KT Turner said during his weekly press conference on Tuesday afternoon. “I talked to a lot of the guys and we’re in a good spot. We know that our second season is ending and our third season is about to start up, and we know that’s our most important season. These guys’ minds are where they’re supposed to be and we’re excited to play.”
The Mavericks are looking to end a two-game skid and position themselves for the 2025 Hercules Tires WAC Basketball Championship next week in Las Vegas. UTA fell last Saturday at home to Abilene Christian 70-59. The Mavs enter play one game behind a trio of teams – ACU (hosts GCU), Seattle U (at Utah Tech) and Tarleton State (hosts Utah Valley).
CBU has won two straight including Thursday night’s dominant performance at home over Tarleton State, 68-48. UTA overcame a 17-point second half deficit on Feb. 13, in Arlington to outlast the Lancers 82-79 in overtime behind forward Raysean Seamster’s career-high 29 points in the last meeting between the two programs.
The Lancers are led by head coach Rick Croy, who has been at the helm since the spring of 2013. Croy is 378-162 all-time as a head coach, 248 of those wins during his time in Riverside (116-98 since moving to Division I). Prior to taking over at CBU, Croy was also a head coach at Citrus College. Additionally Croy served as an assistant at St. Mary’s, UC Riverside and Concordia.
“They have the size advantage,” Turner continued, talking about CBU ahead of Saturday’s game. “When we play Ray [Seamster], we have the quickness advantage. Then we can put Cam [freshman center Cameron Jackson] in also to match their size. We feel like we can play two different ways with them. They’re big, they are. They’ve got two bigs that are really, really good. They’re good in the paint and we can’t allow them to hurt us in the paint, especially with their rebounding. They’re really good rebounders.”
Cal Baptist is led by guard Dominique Daniels, Jr., who is averaging a team-high 19.7 ppg (and had 12 points and five assists in Arlington on Feb. 13). Forwards Kendal Coleman (11.2 ppg and 8.3 rpg) and guard Javonte Johnson who scored 15 and added five rebounds off the bench for the Lancers back on Feb. 13.
Saturday’s meeting between UTA and Cal Baptist will be the fifth all-time, with UTA having won the last two meetings, both in Arlington.
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