KATY, Texas _ A year ago, the University of Central Arkansas Bears made the Southland Conference Basketball Tournament as an eighth seed _ surviving a five-way tiebreaker to make the field _ and lost a first-round game.

This year the Bears are going in as the seventh seed, with a plan to make their stay in Katy, Texas a bit longer this time.

The Bears open tournament play against the No. 6 Lamar Cardinals at 7:30 Wednesday at the Merrell Center in their Postseason Run presented by First Security Bank.

"I think the biggest thing for us is to make postseason an annual event,' said fourth-year head coach Russ Pennell, whose Bears won a Division I-record 16 games this season. "And now that we had a taste of it last year, we want to win. You don't just want to make it, you want to play awhile. So I think winning a game in the Southland Conference Tournament would really put a stamp on a pretty good season, kind of validate a good season, and hopefully establish who we are becoming. That we're a consistent team in this tournament year in and year out.'

Another difference from last season is the Bears entered the 2017 tournament with five consecutive losses to end the conference slate. This edition of  the Bears will take a three-game winning streak into its first-round game. UCA has consecutive victories over Abilene Christian, Sam Houston State and Northwestern State. Lamar (19-12, 11-7) lost its last game 69-60 to McNeese State on Saturday.

"There are seven teams in the tournament if you eliminate us, and we have beaten five of the seven teams,' said Pennell. "And the two we have not beaten, we've lost to by single digits in four games, and had leads deep in the game in all four games. I just think that shows the balance in this league this year. If the seventh seed has that, then the rest of the teams probably have the same scenarios against each other.
"I would say that we're not the only team that feels like they can win the whole thing, which makes for a highly, highly competitive tournament. Everyone knows they have a chance.'

The Bears do own a victory over the Cardinals in the only meeting between the teams during the regular season, although it took double overtime to accomplish it. UCA beat Lamar 100-91 at the Montagne Center, with senior guard Jordan Howard scoring a team-high 27 points and freshman point guard DeAndre Jones recording a triple-double with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, just the second triple-double in school history at that point. Since then, freshman center Hayden Koval added another one against Houston Baptist with 17 points, 10 rebounds and a school-record 11 blocked shots.

Lamar is led by first-team All-SLC selection Colton Weisbrod, who had a career-high 38 points against the Bears in the first meeting, including going 16 of 22 at the free-throw line. UCA's defense held the Cardinals to just 38.8 percent shooting from the field and the Bears won the game by outscoring the Cardinals 14-5 in the second overtime period.

"They are a very well-balanced team. They have a lot of depth, they're athletic,' said Pennell. "I think the key for us will be not letting them get out and score easy points in transition. And conversely, we want to be able to score easy baskets in transition. I think it will be a pretty good matchup. Obviously, a double overtime game, it doesn't get much closer than that. 

"I think right now it comes down to who can do what they do the best. That's kind of our focus. Maybe not getting so caught up in what they do, but really trying to lock in on what we do. And I think that's going to be a big key to the game.'

The Bears turned it on in the final two weeks of the regular season to earn the seventh seed, and Pennell credits a blowout loss to Stephen F. Austin on Feb. 21 in Nacogdoches, Texas, as the wake-up call. 

"After that disappointing loss at Stephen F. Austin, I think our guys really took some inventory of where they were,' said Pennell. "We had been talking about consistency, and I think our play had been consistent but obviously our winning was not. And I think SFA kind of revealed that if you just go in not really locked in, you can get embarrassed. 

"That was the back end of a three-game losing streak, and we went from sixth (place) to being out (of the tournament). And I think the realization of that kind of hit our guys. We had been telling them that and warning them of that, but sometimes the reality has to stare you in the face before you can make a change. 

"And I thought from that point on, our attention to detail has been better in practice. I've seen a different quality out of our older guys as far as leadership. There was just a different feel at the first practice at Abilene the day after we lost. And it's carried over through these last three games. Some times you need one of those wake-up calls. 

"And now, certainly the three wins going in ought to give you some confidence as you move forward.'

In possibly as wide-open a tournament as the SLC has seen in some time, the Bears have one intangible that no other team in the field has, the SLC Player of the Year in Howard. He led the SLC in scoring and is No. 2 in the nation in total points and third in scoring average (25.8). He is also the career leader at UCA and in the state of Arkansas among Division I players in points scored (2,447) and three-pointers (377), and the UCA record holder for free throws. Over his last five games, Howard has made 45 of 46 at the line.

  "After we beat Northwestern State, that's exactly what (NSU) Coach (Mike) MccConathy said to me,' Pennell said. "They kind of played slow and slowed us down and we only ended up winning 61-58. Coach Mike said, 'what it came down to was, you had the best player on the floor.' 

'And I do think there is comfort in knowing that Jordan commands attention from every team we play. Even if you slow him down a little bit, I think he helps the rest of the guys on our team get better looks just by being out there on the floor. We expect him to play like the conference Player of the Year, and with that, I think we have a chance to do very well.'

UCA senior Mathieu Kamba, an All-SLC honorable mention selection, is in the Top 10 in UCA history in both points (1,406) and rebounds (687). Koval, in the Top 10 in the nation in blocked shots, including a school-record 11 in a win over Houston Baptst, was named to the SLC All-Defensive team.

The UCA-Lamar winner will face No. seed SFA at 7:30 Thursday. The Bears split the season series with the Lumberjacks, both winning at home.

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