INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. _ The Butler Bulldogs turned it up, specifically their shooting, in the second half Friday night to down the University of Central Arkansas Bears 85-53 at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse.

The Bulldogs (2-0) led the Bears (0-2) by just eight points at 38-30 at halftime, but then outscored UCA 47-23 in the decisive second half. The Bulldogs came out of the locker room and shot 58.3 percent from the field (14 of 24) and held the Bears to just 30.8 percent after the break.

UCA was within two points at 24-22 with 4:21 left in the first half after falling behind 4-0 to open the game. The Bulldogs hit just enough down the stretch to push the lead to eight points at halftime.

"I think it was similar to the last game, except we played better for a longer this time,' said UCA head coach Anthony Boone, referring to UCA's loss at Saint Louis on Tuesday. "I thought the last game it was a good 15 minutes, and this time we were pretty good for about 20 minutes. That's what I told the guys, it was disappointing in the second half. The first half we rebounded very well we assaulted the offensive glass, we rarely turned the ball over. We only had four turnovers at the half. And even with the bad second half, we ended up with 12, which is pretty low for our program the last few years.

"But for 20 minutes we looked like a Big East team. And we have to continue to expand that amount of time. But I thought overall, that first half was incredible and we're going to look to improve on that.'

The Bulldogs dominated at the free-throw line, hitting 21 of 30 while the Bears shot just six (making four) for the entire game. The Bears definitely cut down on their turnovers from the season opener at St. Louis when they had 22. UCA turned the ball over just four times in the first half and only 12 times for the game.

UCA freshman point guard Camren Hunter of Bryant, Ark., was a key cog in the Bears' attack Friday, finishing with a team-high 14 points, while adding 3 rebounds and 4 assists and going 4 of 8 from three-point range. The key stat was just one turnover in 34 minutes after recording eight in the opener. 

"He had an incredible game,' said Boone. "And I thought he did well last game until he got tired. He actually played longer this game but he figured out how to mentally break through that. That was a big step for him. He was incredible tonight.'

Junior forward Eddy Kayouloud had 10 points and 3 rebounds off the bench, while transfer guard Darious Hall was solid again with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 asssits and 2 steals in 27 minutes of action.

Butler, one of the most experienced teams in the country, had four players in double figures, led by Jayden Taylor with 18 points. 

UCA will continue its opening three-game road trip at the defending NCAA champion Baylor Bears next Wednesday in Waco, Texas. Game time is 7 p.m. at the Ferrell Center.