ABILENE, Texas _ The Abilene Christian Wildcats got hot from three-point range in the second half and opened Southland Conference play with an 87-70 victory over the University of Central Arkansas Bears on Sunday at Moody Coliseum.

    The Wildcats (7-7, 1-0) connected on six of nine from three-point range in the final 20 minutes to push a 41-34 halftime lead to as much as 24 points in the second half. For the day, ACU was 11 of 18 from beyond the arc on its home floor, with Austin Cooke going 4 of 7.

    "We didn't get out and cover on the perimeter as well as we needed to,' said Anthony Boone, UCA's associate head coach. "We allowed drives, and they kicked it out to their shooters. Just little miscues on defense that led to them getting too many open looks.'

    The Bears and Wildcats both shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, but ACU connected on two more three-pointers and grabbed a 41-34 lead at the break. UCA junior Jake Zuilhof led the Bears with 12 points, hitting 5 of 7 from the field. Jordan Howard and Mike Martin added eight points each.
    
    The Wildcats ran out to as much as an eight point lead with 4:09 to play but the Bears came back with a 5-0 run to get close again. A pair of free throws by Zuilhof and a three-pointer in transition by Howard closed the gap to 36-34 in the final minute but ACU's Parker Wentz hit a three-pointer at the buzzer for the seven-point halftime advantage.

    "We've been working on getting Jake more involved in the offense,' said Boone, "and we did very well with that today, especially in the first half. We kind of went away from it in the second half as the game was getting a little out of hand. We have to learn that even when a team starts to make a run on us, we can't get it all back in one or two possessions.

    "We have to keep doing what was good for us in the first half, and that was attacking inside and then looking for those open shots.'

    The second half was all ACU as consecutive three-pointers by Cooke gave the Wildcats a 52-36 lead just three minutes into the half. The Bears, who shot a respectable 47.1 percent from the field for the game, got as close as 12 points on several ocassions in the second half but could get no closer. 

    "It's tough starting (conference play) on the road,' said Boone, "especially with a young team. And Abilene Christian has played well the past few games, especially here. They thought this was a chance for them to come out and get a win at home, and they came out with the kind of intensity it took to get a win. 

    "This is a learning experience for us, and we have to play a little differently to win on the road. Even though Abilene Christian may not be a New Mexico or a Nebraska, it's still their floor and they have a lot of confidence here. And we have to come out with a stern discipline and focus.'

    Zuilhof, a junior from Azle, Texas, tied his career high wtih 16 points and set a career-high with 9 rebounds. Martin added 18 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, while Howard scored 17 points. 

    The Bears have a quick turnaround, returning home to host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday night at the Farris Center.