MONROE, La. - The ULM Warhawks conclude the 2019-20 season with Senior Day at noon on Saturday as they host UT Arlington. ULM dropped Thursday night's game to Texas State, 59-53, to fall to 3-25 overall and 1-16 in the Sun Belt Conference. UT Arlington has won six straight games and will be the No. 3 seed in next week's Sun Belt Conference tournament after beating the Ragin' Cajuns, 73-66, on Thursday.
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP (based on previous game)
#2
Gara Beth Self, 5-8, Fr., G: 9.6 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 2.1 apg
#1
Amber Thompson, 5-9, Sr., G: 10.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 2.3 apg
#11
Whitney Goins, 6-0, Jr., G/F: 6.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 1.1 apg
#4
Kierra Crockett, 6-0, Jr., F: 4.9 ppg, 6.7 rpg
#24
Diamond Brooks, 6-2, Jr., C: 8.0 ppg, 5.9 rpg
STARTING FIVE
1. ULM will honor three seniors prior to Saturday's game vs. UT Arlington.
Destini Lunsford,
Lauren Fitch and
Amber Thompson will be recognized before tip-off at Fant-Ewing Coliseum. Lunsford is a four-year letterwinner at ULM, and has earned her bachelor's of science degree in health studies. She is currently enrolled in the master's of public administration program at ULM. She played in just five games this season due to an injury. Fitch is a two-year letterwinner at ULM, and is scheduled to graduate this spring with a bachelor's of science degree in health studies. She played in just 10 games this season due to an injury. Thompson is a two-year letterwinner at ULM, and is scheduled to graduate this spring with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology. Thompson has played in 27 of 28 games for ULM this season.
2. Saturday's game marks the 2019-20 season finale for the ULM women's basketball team. The Warhawks have been eliminated from contention for the 10-team Sun Belt Conference Tournament, which begins on Tuesday.
3.
Amber Thompson is looking to close out her career on a tear. Thompson has scored in double figures in seven of the last nine games and is averaging a team-best 10.8 points per game. Thompson hit both of her 3-point attempts on Thursday vs. Texas State, finishing with seven points and eight rebounds. Thompson has connected on four of her last five 3-point field goals coming into Saturday's season finale.
4. Freshman guard
Gara Beth Self did her damage from the free throw line Thursday night while scoring a team-high 18 points. Self knocked down nine of her 12 free throw attempts. She also pulled down a career-high six rebounds while handing out four assists to three turnovers.
5. Junior guard/forward
Whitney Goins is looking to build momentum heading into her senior season. Goins has matched a career-best streak with three consecutive double-figure games. Goins scored 10 points vs. Texas State. She has knocked down at least two 3-pointers in five straight games.
PREVIEWING UT ARLINGTON
Saturday's game is the 63rd all-time meeting between the Warhawks and Mavericks. ULM has a 34-28 advantage in the series. The two met as members of the Southland Conference from 1983 to 2006, and then resumed the series in 2014 after UT Arlington joined the Sun Belt Conference prior to the 2013-14 season. ULM won the first four meetings between the two in the Sun Belt, but UTA has won the last eight matchups, including a 72-34 win in Arlington this season. Last year, UTA took a 60-56 decision in overtime in Monroe.
UT Arlington is locked into the third seed for next week's Sun Belt Conference tournament, and will host first round and quarterfinal games on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Mavericks have won six straight games entering Saturday's contest and sit at 19-10 overall and 13-4 in the Sun Belt Conference.
UT Arlington is one of the top defensive teams in the Sun Belt Conference. UTA leads the Sun Belt in scoring defense (59.6 points per game), sit second in steals (9.1 per game), and third in field goal percentage defense (36.2%), defensive rebounding (27.3 per game) and blocked shots (3.6 per game).
The Mavericks are also one of the best in the Sun Belt in distributing and protecting the basketball. UTA leads the Sun Belt in assists (17.1 per game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.1).
UTA also ranks highly in offensive categories in the Sun Belt, ranking second in field goal percentage (44.0%), third in scoring margin (+7.5 points per game) and fourth in scoring offense (67.1 points per game).
Senior forward Marie Benson leads the Mavericks and ranks second in the Sun Belt Conference in scoring at 17.0 points per game. Benson is also tracking down 7.4 rebounds per game. Benson has 24 double-figure games this year and has tallied eight double-doubles, including an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double vs. ULM on Jan. 18. She has topped 20 points eight times this season, and scored in double figures in her last six contests. Benson scored a season-high 30 points vs. the Ragin' Cajuns on 10-of-11 shooting and 10-of-11 free throw shooting on Jan. 16. She tracked down a season-best 16 rebounds at South Alabama on Jan. 23. Benson also ranks second in the Sun Belt in field goal percentage (53.3%), fourth in offensive rebounding (2.9 per game), sixth in rebounding, eighth in steals (1.7), 12th in blocked shots (0.6) and 13th in defensive rebounding (4.5).
Sophomore guard Claire Chastain is second on the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game. Chastain also has 3.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. Chastain has scored in double-figures 17 times this season and has scored more than 20 points four times. She scored a season-high 22 points twice, coming against Louisville on Nov. 28 and against Georgia Southern on Feb. 29. Chastain ranks ninth in the Sun Belt in 3-point field goals made (1.5 per game). She was held scoreless with two rebounds on 0-of-6 shooting and 0-of-4 3-point shooting vs. ULM on Jan. 18.
Senior guard Aysia Evans is third on the team in scoring at 9.5 points per game. Evans also averages 1.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Evans has scored in double figures 13 times this season, topping 20 points three times, including a season-high 24 points vs. Coastal Carolina on Feb. 8. Evans scored in double figures in a season-best six consecutive games, starting with a 20-point performance vs. ULM on Jan. 18. Evans ranks third in the Sun Belt in steals and 13th in 3-pointers made (1.4 per game).
Sophomore guard Terryn Milton is fourth on the team at 8.0 points per game, but leads the team with 4.4 assists per game. Milton also averages 4.1 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game. She has scored in double figures eight times, picking up a season-high 18 points vs. Kansas State on Nov. 24. Milton leads the Sun Belt in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.4), ranks third in assists (4.4 per game) and is seventh in minutes played (33.0).
