Tulsa, Okla. – The Central Arkansas men's basketball team opened the 2015-16 season on the road on Saturday, taking on the Golden Hurricane of the University of Tulsa. Despite shooting 50.9% on the day, the Bears were unable to overcome a 36-point deficit in the paint, falling 98-81,

Central Arkansas (0-1) shot an even 50% in the first half and went 6-of-11 for 54.5% from behind the three-point line to head into the halftime break trailing 44-38. In the half, junior Derreck Brooks shot 5-of-7 from the floor for 12 points and gathered a pair of rebounds, while sophomore Jordan Howard was 4-of-8 from the floor and 3-of-5 from deep to tally 11 points and a pair of assists.

The Bears maintained their hot hand in the second half, going 15-29 to shoot 51.7%, but the Golden Hurricane (1-0) shot 60.6% in the half to pull away. Brooks continued to lead the way for Central Arkansas, adding 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting and another pair of rebounds. Senior Justin Foreman went connected on four of his six shots in the half, pouring in 10 points and collecting four rebounds in the half.

All told on the day, Central Arkansas shot 50.9% from the floor and 47.8% from behind the arc. Brooks led all scorers in the game with 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting and 5-of-9 shooting from three-point range, while Howard tallied 16 points on 5-of-12 shooting to go along with a game-high seven rebounds and a team-high three assists. Foreman was the final Bear to score in double-digits, collecting 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting and adding six rebounds and a steal.

The Bears return to the court on Thursday, taking on UMass in the MGM Grand "Men Who Speak Up" Main Event at 6:00 PM, before closing out the opening round of games in the tournament at Rutgers at 4:00 PM on Saturday.