UT Arlington has been on a nice run of late, capped off a by last season’s regular season Sun Belt Conference title and subsequent run to the NIT quarterfinals. They finished the season with a school-record 27 wins, a great follow-up to a CIT appearance a year earlier. The natural question is if they can keep it up, and there were some key questions to that end this off-season.
The ultimate answer is that the Mavericks are very much in a position to do that, largely because of who they have coming back.
The Mavericks are in their third conference in six years, having left the Southland for the WAC, where they reached the championship game in their only season before going to their current home. They have a 46-30 record in the Sun Belt, aided by last season’s 14-4 showing, so they have made their presence felt in the Sun Belt pretty quickly. They have won over 50 games the past two seasons.
Because of this, head coach Scott Cross seemed to be a likely hot name for other jobs this past off-season, but he is still running the show at his alma mater. While that’s undoubtedly part of the draw, he’ll have a chance to win big again this season. With that, the Mavericks return their three most important pieces: their two star players and the winningest coach in program history.
The star players are reigning Sun Belt Player of the Year Kevin Hervey and dynamic point guard Erick Neal. Hervey has been getting more national recognition, and a season with 16 double-doubles will do that for you. He should contend for the conference’s top award again, as well as more national recognition. Neal doesn’t get nearly the recognition, but he was fifth in the nation in assists last season and will likely become the school’s all-time leader in that category this season. He was a big part of their big win at Saint Mary’s and will again be a big part of what this team does.
Hervey and Neal are the only two starters returning, but that’s a good place to be and they have help. Kaelon Wilson started seven games last season, but should be in the starting lineup all along this time around. Nathan Hawkins is the other holdover who averaged double-digit minutes last year, while Mairega Clarke returns from redshirting last year and should certainly be in the mix. Unless other veterans emerge into bigger roles, newcomers could be X-factors.
Six newcomers are on the roster, all but one of them hailing from Texas. While none will be the stars of this experienced team, contributions from them certainly will be needed. David Azore scored over 2,000 points in high school, while the other five are all 6’7″ or taller, including graduate transfer Johnny Hamilton and junior college transfer Davion Turner, both of who could certainly help Hervey up front right away. Hamilton, a native of Trinidad who is the only newcomer not from the Lone Star State, just might be the X-factor, transferring in from Virginia Tech and being a rare 7-footer in the Sun Belt.
While the Mavericks beat Oklahoma in a benefit exhibition game on Saturday night, that game and other exhibitions always have to be taken with a grain of salt. They did see Hervey and Neal carry them, as will be expected most nights out, but they got other contributions, and this should only help their confidence.
The Mavericks will be challenged in non-conference play, something that couldn’t quite be said last year save for the win at Saint Mary’s. After opening with Loyola Marymount at home, they go to BYU and Alabama, then go to Northern Iowa in early December before coming home to play Atlantic Sun favorite Florida Gulf Coast. A trip to Omaha to take on Creighton is also on tap. They open Sun Belt play with two straight on the road and alternate consecutive games at home and on the road in January, but start February with three straight and five of seven at home.
This will be the last call for Hervey and Neal, and there’s every reason to expect it to be pretty good. With Cross still in town as well, there is even more reason for optimism. The biggest obstacle remaining might be health, as is the case for any team, and if that holds up, the Mavericks’ good run of late should hold up as well in what should be a competitive race in the Sun Belt.
