LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Getting back in the win column, the Central Arkansas women's basketball team stepped up in the second half to pull away with a 73-59 win over Bellarmine on Saturday. After falling behind in the first half, the defense locked in and held the Knights to just 21 second half points.
"I think we shot confidently, I thought we got some shots in rhythm that we haven't gotten lately. But we have some shooters that can get hot if they get the opportunity," head coach Tony Kemper said of the win. "Good day for the Sugar Bears, it's going to be a happy plane ride home. It's good to go back home on the winning track."
Kinley Fisher shot 4-for-5 from distance, logging a game-high 23 points in the win.
Jade Upshaw tallied 18 points and ten boards for her second double-double this season. Defensively,
Bree Stephens was as active as ever, blocking four shots, snaring one steal while pulling down a game-best 11 rebounds.
The Sugar Bears started out hot, racing out to a 9-3 lead midway through the first. Upshaw had seven of the nine, helping Central Arkansas blitz the home team out of the gates. But Bellarmine found its feet and responded in a big way, closing the frame with a 12-5 run to storm back in and take the lead.
Leah Mafua tied the game at 17-17 on the Sugar Bears' first possession of the second quarter, but the Knights stayed tough, and the lead bounced back and forth. Central Arkansas would tie the game, Bellarmine would respond with a score. A three-pointer from Fisher gave the Sugar Bears a one-point lead, the Knights would answer on the other end. But by the end of the half, Bellarmine held a four-point lead, after hitting three free throws at the end of the second quarter. Upshaw and Fisher were both in double-figures at the break, and Upshaw had six rebounds after playing all but 79 seconds of the opening half.
After falling behind by five to open the third, the Sugar Bears answered with a 9-0 run, swinging the momentum of the game 180 degrees in the other direction and taking a four-point lead on a
Jenna Rose Mafua three-pointer. Mafua combined with Stephens to score 11 points in the quarter, battering the Knights and stretching the lead to six by the end of the frame. Jenna Rose hit two shots from beyond the arc, helping the Sugar Bears in a crucial time when the offense had sputtered.
Fisher scored four points in the early minutes of the fourth quarter to extend the lead to double-digits, the largest lead by either team to that point. Bellarmine muscled the lead back to seven, only to have Upshaw connect on her second triple of the game to push it back to ten. From there, Central Arkansas never looked back, and the lead never dipped under ten again. Central Arkansas used seven free throws and a pair of triples to lock up the lead, while holding Bellarmine to 15 percent shooting to ice the game. The Knights only managed seven points in the final quarter, missing all six of their three-pointers as well.
The Sugar Bears improved to 6-0 after a loss this season, responding in the second half with increased energy and defensive pressure. Bellarmine shot just 23 percent from the floor in the second half, and had no answer for the ball movement and dribble-drive ability from the Sugar Bears. The bench came through in a big way as well, as Central Arkansas outscored the home team 34-12 off the bench, with the duo of Fisher and Mafua combining for 31 points on 8-of-16 from the floor and 6-of-9 from three.
Central Arkansas returns home for the next game, returning to the Farris Center on Wednesday to face Queens. Last season's matchup against the Royals ended in a 73-43 win for the Sugar Bears. Tip-off on Wednesday is set for 6:30 p.m.
