SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco women's basketball team made a strong push in the final quarter Sunday, but UT Arlington's 22-point lead proved to be just enough for the Lady Mavericks to hold on, as they staved off the Dons' comeback to win 80-73 in a non-conference matchup at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Nia Alexander, Marta Galic and Shannon Powell all gave the Dons (2-3) a lift in the fourth quarter. Alexander went off, scoring 12 of her 14 points on the night in the final frame. She scored 11 points in a row and 12 of 13 over a 4-minute, 15-second period while assisting on the next basket as well, helping the Dons kick off their 18-5 comeback push. Galic had five points in the run with assists from both Alexander and Powell, as the run turned a 21-point deficit into an eight-point game with 61 seconds left.
   
• The Dons were down by 10 to start the second half, and UT Arlington's defense locked down even tighter, not allowing a field goal by the Dons for more than five minutes when Julia Nielacna finally put in a jumper in the paint. Meanwhile, the Lady Mavericks started the second half 5 for 7 from the field and pushed their lead to 55-34. San Francisco took 13 shots in the third quarter and made four, while UTA finished with a 53.8 shooting percentage to extend their lead 66-46.
   
• The teams were nearly even in the first quarter. Only 3.2 percent separated their shooting performances (both under 45 percent), and if not for four points by the Lady Mavericks in the final 33 seconds of the quarter, they would have been separated by just two points. As was the case in Friday's game versus Northern Colorado, UT Arlington took advantage of six offensive rebounds in the opening frame alone for 10 second-chance points.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 4: Four Dons scored in double figures Sunday, led by Powell's 19 points. It is the fifth time in five games USF has had multiple double-digit point scorers, and the third time it has had at least four.
• 19: The Dons pulled down a season-high 19 offensive rebounds, out-boarding the Lady Mavericks, 19-11, on the offensive glass and 36-32 overall. But UT Arlington made the most of their second chances, outscoring USF, 14-11, in that category.
• 51: A total of 51 personal fouls were called Sunday, leading to 49 free-throw attempts. UTA went 21 for 25 (84.0 percent) and USF went 17 for 24 (70.8 percent) from the charity stripe.

COMING UP

• San Francisco kicks off a three-game road trip starting Thursday that will take it to the Pacific Northwest and California's Central Valley. The Dons play at Pac-12 Conference member Washington State on Thursday, then head over to nearby Moscow, Idaho, to play Idaho on Saturday. The road trip concludes on Dec. 5 with a game back in Northern California at Sacramento State.
   
• The Dons return to War Memorial at the Sobrato Center on Dec. 15 versus two-time defending Big West Conference champion UC Davis. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on USFDons.com.