Bears Set for Four Straight Home Games

Courtesy University of Arkansas Athletics Department

CONWAY, Ark. _ After playing four of their first six Southland Conference games away from home, the University of Central Arkansas Bears are back at the Farris Center for four consecutive games, beginning with a Thursday night meeting with McNeese State.

The Bears (6-10, 1-5) return home on the heels of their first SLC victory, a 76-67 win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi last Saturday afternoon in Corpus Christi. UCA came back from a 10-point halftime deficit and made 8 of 12 from three-point range in the second half to pull away for the victory.

“Just the emotion in that locker room was great,’ said UCA head coach Corliss Williamson. “It’s something we can build on. We have four games in a row at the Farris Center and hopefully we can take some of the momentum and carry it over and get these games at home. We’ve had a tough run so far in conference play, but hopefully this will help us turn that corner.’

McNeese State (8-8, 2-4) has had UCA’s number of late, winning the past four meetings. UCA’s last victory in the series was in the 2010 season finale in Lake Charles, La. The Cowboys are coming off a 74-50 home victory over winless Lamar. They have won two of their past three games after a four-game losing streak.

Earlier in the season, MSU won five straight games, including wins at Texas Tech and at home against Louisiana Tech. 

The Bears continue to lead the SLC in three-pointers made per game with 7.7, and have made at least eight in a game 10 times this season. They are second in the league in three-point percentage (36.3), with senior Robert Crawford standing second individually at 44.8 percent. Junior Jordan Harks is second in field-goal percentage (59.5), while Crawford is third in scoring (15.3) and senior Jarvis Garner is fifth in scoring (15.2) and ninth in rebounding (6.6). 

The Cowboys are led by 6-foot-5 sophomore forward Desharick Guidry, who is 11.9 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. He is second in the conference in rebounding, while sophomore guard Kevin Hardy leads the league in steals with 2.4 per game and is fourth in assists (4.0). 

The Bears are also at home Saturday afternoon, hosting the Lamar Cardinals, the league’s NCAA Tournament representative a year ago. Tipoff for that game is approximately 4:15 following the Sugar Bears’ game with Lamar.