KATY, Texas — For the ninth consecutive season, the Sugar Bears find themselves in postseason play at the Southland Conference Basketball Tournament in Katy, Texas. But this time, they find themselves in the unfamiliar position of coming in as the underdog. The 8th seed for the first time, the Sugar Bears will play on the tournament's opening day after getting double-byes in 2016 and 2017 and a single bye last season.

Needing to win four times for their third tournament championship in four seasons, the Sugar Bears' first hurdle comes in the form of 5th-seeded Sam Houston State at 11:00am on Thursday. The Bearkats feature the Southland's Newcomer of the Year in junior guard Jaylonn Walker, a third-team all-Southland selection in senior forward Lydia Baxter, an all-Southland honorable mention pick in Jenniffer Oramas, and the league's Coach of the Year in Ravon Justice – who guided the 'Kats to 16 wins in her first season after SHSU had won just four last season, and had a 10-win improvement in the Southland.

The Bearkats (16-12, 11-7 Southland) swept the series in the regular season, defeating the Sugar Bears (11-17, 6-12) 66-62 in Huntsville and 71-59 in Conway last Wednesday.

The Sugar Bears have come away victorious in at least one game in each of their last three trips to the tournament, going 5-1 in their last 6 games in the Merrell Center. If they were to extend that streak to four years, they would set up a clash with 4th-seeded Abilene Christian at 11:00am on Friday. 

SOUTHLAND TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
 
GAME INFORMATION
#8 CENTRAL ARKANSAS (11-17, 6-12 Southland) vs #5 Sam Houston State (16-12, 11-7)
March 14, 2019 • 11:00am • Merrell Center • Katy, Texas

MULTIMEDIA
Video: ESPN+
Radio: The Bear 91.3 (pregame begins 10:40)
Live Stats
On Twitter: @ucasports @ucascoreboard @ucawbb

SERIES HISTORY
Central Arkansas leads 14-6
10-3 under Coach Rushing
1-0 in Katy
SHSU won last 2 meetings
Sugar Bears won previous 10

Last 6 meetings:
3/13/16 – UCA 69, SHSU 62 (Katy, Texas - Southland Conference Tournament championship)
2/15/17 – UCA 75, SHSU 48 (Conway)
1/3/18 – UCA 69, SHSU 44 (Conway)
2/28/18 – UCA 73, SHSU 53 (Huntsville)
1/9/19 – SHSU 66, UCA 62 (Huntsville)
3/6/19 – SHSU 671, UCA 59 (Conway)


STATISTICAL LEADERS
Central Arkansas
Points Per Game: Kamry Orr (15.6)
Rebounds Per Game: Alanie Fisher (4.5)
Assists Per Game: Kamry Orr (3.6)
Blocks: Hannah Langhi (14)
Steals: Kamry Orr (67)

Sam Houston State
Points Per Game: Jaylonn Walker (15.3)
Rebounds Per Game: Lydia Baxter (8.3)
Assists Per Game: Jenniffer Oramas (4.7)
Blocks: Amber Leggett (24)
Steals: Jaylonn Walker (68)

NOTES

• Despite finishing the season on a 5-game losing streak, the Sugar Bears qualified for their 9th consecutive Southland tournament by beating out Northwestern State via tiebreaker by virtue of their 62-60 win at New Orleans on Jan. 23

• The Sugar Bears have a 7-6 record all-time at the Southland tournament, winning in 2016 & 2017 and finishing as runner-up in 2011.

• The Sugar Bears are 1-10 against this year's tournament field, the lone win being the win at New Orleans.

• The Sugar Bears were swept by the Bearkats in two regular season meetings for the first time in the series history.

• Kamry Orr was named All-Southland 2nd team on Wednesday, her 2nd straight season to be named to the all-conference teams after being a 3rd team selection last season. She was also named to the All-Defensive team for the first time. She is the 6th Sugar Bear to be named All-Southland multiple times, and the 6th to the All-Defensive Team. She finished in the Top 5 in Southland play in points (3rd, 17.3 ppg); assists (5th, 4.5 apg); steals (2nd, 2.8 spg); FT Pct. (4th, 82.9); and FTs made (2nd, 92).

• The Sugar Bears and Bearkats have met in Katy only once previously, with the top-seeded Sugar Bears winning 69-62 over 7th-seeded SHSU in the 2016 championship game. Kamry Orr squared off against the Sugar Bears as a freshman for the Bearkats, and was SHSU's 2nd-leading scorer with 14 points, adding 3 points and 2 assists.

• The Sugar Bears have 10 losses this season by single digits, including 8 in league play by an average of 5.5 points.

• The Sugar Bears have used 20 different starting lineups this season, and have had a total of 29 games missed due to injury.

MERRELL CENTER CLEAR BAG POLICY