LAS VEGAS _ The Howard Bison got a pair of double-doubles and dominated the University of Central Arkansas Bears from the opening tip Wednesday, taking a 73-54 victory in the middleweight division championship game at the "Men Who Speak Up" Main Event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. 

    The Bison (3-2) led 40-24 at halftime and never let up in the second half, holding the Bears (1-4) to just 35.5 percent shooting from the field. UCA was coming off its first victory of the season over UTSA on Monday, a game in which it shot 57.1 percent overall and 53.8 percent from three-point range.

    On Wednesday, the Bison limited the Bears to 4 of 19 from beyond the arc, with sophomore guard Jordan Howard hitting all four (4 of 10). Howard topped the Bears with 16 points, while senior forward Justin Foreman added 12 points.

    UCA, which trailed 17-4 to open the game, making just one of its first nine shot attempts, never found an answer for Howard guard James Daniel III. He came in leading the nation in scoring at 29 points per game and finished with 22 to lead the Bison. Damon Collins added 15 points 13 rebounds and Marcel Boyd had 10 points and 10 rebounds. 

    The Bears shot just 25 percent from the field in the first half, making 8 of 32, and were outrebounded 27-18. UCA found a better shooting touch in the final 20 minutes, hitting 46.7 percent, and only lost the half by three points (33-30). But Howard pushed its lead to a game-high 24 points with 6:20 remaining before UCA got it back down to 19 points at the end.

   The Bears are off until a matchup with the Little Rock Trojans at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Stephens Center in Little Rock, the first of two UCA-Little Rock meetings this season. The Trojans return the game at the Farris Center on Dec. 16.