CONWAY, Ark. – The Central Arkansas women's basketball team takes to the road again, heading to the Sunshine State to take on a pair of ASUN foes. First, the Sugar Bears will play Florida Gulf Coast at 6 p.m. CT on Thursday, then quickly turn around to play Stetson at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday.
This pair of road games are critical for the Sugar Bears, who stand 16-6 overall and 8-1 in the ASUN. Currently in second place, the team is a single game behind FGCU and two games ahead of Stetson. The two teams atop the conference are also currently the two longest winning streaks in the ASUN, with the Eagles winners of 12-straight and the Sugar Bears winners of five in a row.
Last week, the Sugar Bears defended home court against Jacksonville and North Florida, holding both teams under 60 points. The two opponents averaged just 51 points, shooting just 36.8 percent from the field and 26.9 percent from three.
Jade Upshaw averaged 17 points per game over the two outings, shooting 54 percent from the floor and 54.5 percent from three. On the defensive side,
Bree Stephens continued to be a problem for the Sugar Bears' opponents, recording four blocks and four steals across two games. The junior from Australia leads the team in both steals and blocks, tallying 29 steals and 32 blocks.
FGCU enters the week with a 19-4 record overall, and a perfect 9-0 start to conference play. The Eagles have been rolling through the ASUN season, outscoring opponents by just over 20 points per game, scoring just under 75 points while allowing 54.5 points per game. FGCU thrives at swinging the ball around for three-pointers, averaging 15 assists and 8.5 made threes per game. Nearly 50 percent of the Eagles' shots during conference play have been three-pointers (247 of 513), and ten players have connected from deep.
The Eagles' leading scorer this season is transfer guard Emani Jefferson, who averages 17.4 points per game. The junior is one of the few FGCU players that doesn't rely on the three-pointer, taking only 19 on the year. What Jefferson does well, though, is get to the line, averaging nearly six trips to the line each game, with three games of ten or more free throw attempts this season.
Stetson, on the other hand, hosts the Sugar Bears with an 11-12 record, standing 6-3 in ASUN games. The Hatters split its last week of play, winning at EKU before dropping a home game to Bellarmine. The home loss was the fourth of the season and the third conference loss of the season for the Hatters, who entered the game on a four-game winning streak.
Unlike FGCU, who leads the conference in scoring margin at +17.9, Stetson is in the lower third of the league, getting outscored by 1.9 points per game. Jamiya Turner leads the team in scoring, sitting at 11.1 points per game. She is the only Hatter above double-figures, but four other Hatters average at least 7.5 points per game. Similar to Gulf Coast's leading scorer, Turner doesn't use the three-pointer as a primary weapon, shooting just 1-for-17 this year.
Tip-off against the Eagles is set for 6 p.m. CT on Thursday, with game time against Stetson set for 1 p.m. CT on Saturday. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+, and live stats will be available online. As always, fans can also follow along on The Bear 91.3, with Steve Owens on the call.
