Indianapolis, Indiana – The Central Arkansas Bears took to the court at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse on Saturday, facing off against the 18^th-ranked Butler Bulldogs. The Bears were unable to find their first-ever win over a Big East school, falling to the Bulldogs 82-52.

The Bears (1-7) found themselves in a 7-0 hole thanks to an 0-for 5 start from the field, before Mathieu Kamba put the Bears on the board for the first time at the 15:28 mark. Butler would extend its lead to 12 points, its largest of the first half, as Kamar Baldwin hit a three to make it 21-9 with 11:34 remaining, before the Bears cut the Bulldog lead to just 25-23 thanks to a 12-2 run over the next 4:26. The Bears would get just five points over the remainder of the half, heading into the break trailing 40-28. For the half, Central Arkansas went 10-for-25 (40%) from the floor, but just 2-of-11 from deep. Jordan Howard and Jeff Lowery paced the Bears with seven points apiece, while Derreck Brooks had a team-high four rebounds.

Butler (8-0) would push the lead out to 53-37 over the first five minutes of the second half, before the Bears got a 12-4 run, punctuated by a 3-pointer from Howard to cut the lead to eight points, 57-49, with 11:39 to play in the game. Central Arkansas would again close out the half on a slump, hitting just three of their nine shots over the last 11 minutes of the game. UCA upped their percentage from the floor to 45.8% (11-of-24) in the half, and shot 45.5% (5-of-11) from beyond the arc. Howard again led the Bears, hitting four of five threes for 13 points, while Brooks added 10 in the half.

On the night, Central Arkansas shot 42.9% from the floor and 31.8% from the three-point line while converting on nine of its 14 free throws. Howard and Brooks each tallied double-digit points for the seventh time this season, with Howard putting up 20 points and Brooks adding 15. Howard extended his streak of games with a three-pointer to 48 straight games and tied for the team lead with six rebounds, while Brooks also pulled down six boards and dishes out a team-high four assists.

After taking the week off due to Finals, the Bears will return to the Natural State next Saturday, December 10^th, heading to Little Rock for the second round of the 2016 iteration of the Rock n' Roar Rivalry. Tip-off against the Trojans is set for 3:00 PM.