Conway, SC (WBTW) — The Coastal Carolina women’s basketball team had its three-game winning streak come to an end Thursday night as it suffered a close 67-64 loss to UT Arlington at the HTC Center. The Chants trailed by just one possession twice during the final minute of the game, but could not overcome the lead that UTA had held since midway through the third quarter. 

After trailing for all of the second quarter and first three minutes of the third quarter, Coastal (11-10, 3-7) managed to tie the game at 37-37 following a 7-2 run. UTA (17-5, 9-2) quickly pulled away, leading by as many as 10 points early the fourth, which marked the largest lead of the night.

The Chants fought back, however, eventually using a 7-3 run to cut the deficit to just three points with 1:31 remaining. Caitlin Roche later hit a 3-pointer in the final minute to bring the Chants within one point, but a pair of UTA free-throw makes with just two seconds remaining sealed the win for the Mavs.

DJ Williams led the Chants with 18 points and 11 rebounds, her third double-double of the season. Williams also had a team-high five assists. Naheria Hamilton followed with 14 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, and Roche reached double figures for her fourth straight game with 13 points.

Coastal shot above 40 percent from the field for the fourth straight game, finishing 24-56 (42.9). However, the Chants managed only 66 percent at the stripe, making 12 of 18 free-throw attempts.

On the other side, UTA shot just 31 percent (20-64) from the field, but got 21 points on 28 attempts at the line.

Cierra Johnson led the Mavs to their fifth straight win with 16 points, followed by Lauren Billie with 11. Seven different Maverick players recorded steals, and UTA cashed in 20 points off of 20 Coastal turnovers.

UTA went on an 11-2 run over the final three minutes of the first quarter to carry a 24-18 lead into the second. The Mavs extended their run to 13-2 with the first made basket of the second period, but Coastal responded with seven unanswered points in just over a minute to cut its deficit to a single point. Following that run, however, the Chants made just one field goal for the remainder of the quarter and UTA managed to widen its lead to five points, 35-30, going into halftime.

Coastal will be back in action at the HTC Center on Saturday at 2 p.m. against Texas State. The Chants suffered a 73-58 loss to the Bobcats the first time these teams met this season back on Jan. 10 in San Marcos, Texas.