CONWAY, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears begin their final homestand on Saturday when they host Southeastern Louisiana in Southland Conference play at 4 p.m. at the Farris Center.
The Bears have three games remaining, with the next two at home, on Saturday and against UTSA on Wednesday.
The Lions (10-16, 3-10) and Bears (7-19, 2-11) are still battling for the eighth and final spot in the SLC postseason tournament. Southeastern won the first meeting 75-71 in overtime on Jan. 25 in Hammond, La. UCA let a seven-point halftime lead slip away as the Lions shot 70.6 percent from the field in the second half, then made 5 of 7 free throws in overtime to secure the win.
The Bears were led by sophomore guard LaQuentin Miles, who scored 26 points and hit 12 of 18 shots from the field. He also added 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. Junior center Anthony Borden was the only other UCA player in double figures with 10 points.
SLU had four players in double figures, led by Jeremy Campbell with 19 points.
The Bears’ loss was their second in what has turned into a 10-game slide since winning two league games in a row over Northwestern State and Nicholls State. Southeastern had a four-game losing streak after the UCA win, but has gone 2-2 since then.
The Lions are ranked 11th in scoring (59.3 ppg) in the SLC but have the third-best defensive team, allowing just 62.2 points per game. UCA is fifth in scoring (71.9) but 12th in scoring defense (83.4). Southeastern leads the league in three-point defense (29.2 percent), while UCA is No. 1 in assists (14.8 per game) and offensive rebounding (15.0).
Individually, Miles is fourth in the SLC in scoring (15.2), tied for first in steals (2.0) with SLU’s DeShawn Patterson and 10th in field-goal percentage (48.8). UCA junior Robert Crawford is the league’s top three-point shooter at 46.6 percent. SLU’s Roosevelt Johnson is third in rebounding (7.9) while Daron Populist is fifth in three-point percentage (42.4).
UCA junior Jarvis Garner is coming off a career-high 28 points against Nicholls State on Wednesday night in Thibodaux, La. Senior Joe Harris added a career-high 17 points as well in the 80-70 loss.
