CONWAY, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears will try to get back on track and open Southland Conference play on a winning note Wednesday when they host the UIW Cardinals.

Game time is 12:30 for "Education Day" at the Farris Center.

UCA (1-9), coming off a 92-79 loss at Pepperdine on Saturday, starts league play with a clean slate. The Bears finished 8-10 in SLC play last season and earned their third consecutive trip to the conference tournament in Katy, Texas.

UCA has played arguably one of the toughest schedules in school history during its non-conference slate, facing Duke, Wichita State, Georgetown, Baylor, Utah and Pepperdine on the road, with a matchup at Top 25 Marquette coming up at the end of the month.

The Southland season opens earlier than usual with the addition of two more conference games this season. UCA also hosts Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Farris Center, putting a pair of league games on the schedule before Christmas for the first time since the Bears joined the league in 2006-07.

The UIW Cardinals are 3-7 overall and are coming off an 11-day break after a 101-65 win over Division III Trinity University back on Dec. 7. 

UCA won last year's meeting 77-60 in San Antonio, Texas, with the Bears outscoring the Cardinals 44-31 in the decisive second half. UCA, which forced 17 turnovers, got 18 points from then-freshman Eddy Kayouloud and 13 points and 7 rebounds from then-sophomore center Hayden Koval. The Cardinals were shorthanded due to injuries and played only eight players in the game. The Bears have won the past two meetings after losing the first six between the teams.

The Bears have three players averaging in double figures, led by Kayouloud at 15.1 points per game. Junior transfer Rylan Bergersen is next at 14.7, followed by Koval with 11.7. Kayouloud and Koval are the Bears' top rebounders at 6.5 and 6.2, respectively. Koval, UCA's career leader in blocked shots, leads the SLC this season with 35. 

UCA has played the past five games without starting junior point guard DeAndre Jones, who had ankle surgery in November. Jones, second all-time in assists at UCA, is expected to be back in the coming weeks.