NATCHITOCHES, La. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears will try to break a six-game losing streak Saturday afternoon, and will have to do it on the road when they take on the Northwestern State Demons at 1 p.m. at Prather Coliseum.
The Bears (5-8) have begun Southland Conference play with losses against Lamar on the road last Saturday and Stephen F. Austin at home on Wednesday. The Demons (9-7) won their first two league games against Texas State and Nicholls State.
“Like I told our guys, it’s still early in conference and I’m not going to get down,’ said UCA head coach Corliss Williamson. “We still have 14 games to go. We just have to find a way to stop the bleeding. Once we get the next win and get the taste of victory, I think our guys will be OK.’
The Bears fought back from a 19-point deficit with just more than 7 minutes to play Wednesday and got to within five points on a three-pointer by Robert Crawford with 1:32 remaining. But the Lumberjacks made their free throws down the stretch to hold off the Bears.
UCA has had very little success against Northwestern State, trailing 12-1 in the overall series. The Demons won both matchups last year. The Bears’ lone victory was a season-ending 92-86 win in 2007.
“We have our hands full, no doubt,’ said Williamson. “They are a tough team, especially at home. We just have to keep getting better at what we do and go out and put a whole game together. We’ve been playing well in spurts, but we need to do it for an entire game.’
The Demons feature one of the top rebounders and shot blockers in the nation in senior William Mosley. The 6-foot-7, 220-pounder leads the SLC in reobunding (9.6) and blocked shots (3.9) and is ranked in the top five in the nation in both categories. Mosley is also third in the league in field-goal percentage at 55.5 percent.
The Bears return home for two games next week, hosting Nicholls State on Wednesday and a return matchup with Lamar on Saturday, as part of a doubleheader with the Sugar Bears.
