HUNTSVILLE, Texas — After narrowly defeating Sam Houston State 66-63 in the Farris Center on Saturday, the Sugar Bears make the return trip to Huntsville to once again face the Bearkats, squaring off at 6:30 Thursday in Johnson Coliseum.
It will mark the first time the Sugar Bears have played the same opponent in consecutive games since a home-and-home with UAPB on Dec. 4 and 8, 1987.
More importantly, Thursday's game will also provide the Sugar Bears (15-11, 8-6 Southland) an opportunity to clinch a Southland Conference tournament berth for the fifth straight season. Only the Sugar Bears, Lamar, McNeese State and Stephen F. Austin have been to each of the last four Southland tournaments, and each of the other three have already punched their ticket for this season's tournament in Katy, Texas March 11-15.
At 8-6 in league play, the Sugar Bears enter Thursday's game in 7th place, but are just a single game back in the win column behind McNeese, Northwestern State and A&M-Corpus Christi, all locked in a tie for 4th place at 9-6. Sam Houston State, with a 5-9 league mark, is currently a half-game up on Houston Baptist for the 8th and final position. Abilene Christian, which has an 8-7 Southland record, is ineligible due to their Division I reclassification status.
UCA will have a chance to gain some ground over the final two weeks of the regular season as they look to break into the top four seeds for the tournament and earn a first-round bye, with 3-11 Southeastern Louisiana visiting the Farris Center on Saturday in the home finale and then a road trip to Nicholls (10-4) and McNeese (9-6) to end the regular season.
In last Saturday's game against the Bearkats, SHSU's Shernise Robertson scored 26 of her game-high 32 points in the 2nd half as the Bearkats outscored the Sugar Bears 40-25 to nearly erase a 41-23 UCA halftime lead. The Sugar Bears held on, however, to remain perfect against the Bearkats in the Farris Center with a 6-0 mark.
Johnson Coliseum has not been as friendly to the Sugar Bears as they are just 1-3 in the building, having lost their last three games in Huntsville after an 87-69 win back in 2008. The Sugar Bears fell 64-48 in 2013, 66-54 in 2011 and 62-58 in 2009.
