NACOGDOCHES, Texas — Winners of four straight, Central Arkansas will look to make it five in a row on Wednesday – but in order to do so, must derail one of the nation's hottest teams as the Sugar Bears face off against league-leading Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches.

The Ladyjacks (15-2, 6-0 Southland) have the nation's fourth-longest winning streak at 14 games – trailing only UConn (93), Mississippi State (20), and Baylor (17) – and have not dropped a game since a 63-48 loss at Texas A&M on Nov. 20. At Johnson Coliseum, the Ladyjacks have won 13 straight, last losing 64-60 to Lamar on Jan. 21 last year.

That loss was the end of a three game losing streak at home for SFA, which began on Jan. 7 when the Sugar Bears escaped with a 55-53 win for their first-ever victory in Nacogdoches. Maggie Proffitt (28) and Brianna Mullins (14) combined for 42 of the Sugar Bears' points in that game, with Taylor Baudoin scoring the winning basket on an inbound play underneath the basket with three seconds remaining.

To make it two in a row, the Southland's No. 1 defense will need to slow the No. 1 offense as the Sugar Bears (13-4, 5-2)  come in with the nation's 4th-ranked scoring defense – allowing just 52.3 points per game, nearly eight points per game better than any other Southland team with Lamar and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 60.1. 

The Ladyjacks, meanwhile, present the league's most potent offense as they score 75.7 per game, 27th best in the nation. In Southland games, SFA has averaged 81.7 points per game – five more than Abilene Christian and more than nine more than any other opponent – and has an average margin of victory of 21.5 points per game. Their closest league contest was a 64-56 win over A&M-Corpus Christi, followed by a nine-point win at ACU. The other wins – over HBU, McNeese, Nicholls and Incarnate Word – came by 37, 31, 25 and 19.

Three 'Jacks average double figures in scoring, led by Taylor Ross at 17.5, including a 19.0 average in Southland games. Ross also ranks 2nd among Southland players with 4.8 assists per game and is 5th in steals at 2.5 per contest. Brentney Branch averages 14.5 for the season, with 18.0 per game in conference play, and is 5th in the Southland with 2.4 3-pointers made per game. Steve Parker, also the team's leading rebounder at 7.8 per game, averages 11 points.

The game pits the league's two top shooting teams against one another, with the Sugar Bears leading the way at 46.7 percent and the 'Jacks just behind at 44.4; while at the same time matching up the league's top two field goal percentage defenses with UCA allowing its opponents to shoot just 34.8 percent for the year, and SFA second in the league at 38.0. 

For the Sugar Bears, Kierra Jordan is coming off her first double-double in a Central Arkansas uniform, posting 23 points and 12 rebounds in Saturday's win at New Orleans. Mullins scored a season-high 18 in that win after averaging just 5 points per game over her previous 10. Raquel Logan leads the Southland in blocked shots with 30, and is 7 away from becoming the program's Division I era record holder, currently trailing only Courtney Duever's 96.

The game can be heard on 91.3 The Bear with Steve Owens, with the pregame show beginning at 5:10; and can also be viewed via SFA's production on ESPN3.