RUSTON, La. – The Central Arkansas women's basketball team couldn't hold on to a halftime lead against Louisiana Tech, falling 70-55 Wednesday night in Ruston. The Sugar Bears played a good defensive first half, but a strong second half by the home team left Central Arkansas on the wrong side of the final score.
The Sugar Bears (7-4) limited the Lady Techsters to just 25 points in the first half, but the momentum swung in the third quarter and Central Arkansas struggled to regain an edge.
Shae Littleford had a team-high 18 points, adding seven rebounds and a steal.
Bree Stephens had 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks. Her first block of the game moved her into second place in the Central Arkansas record book for career rejections, putting her with 144 total blocks.
It took a few minutes for either team to score in the early minutes of the game. Littleford hit a pair at the line to give Central Arkansas the 2-0 advantage, and the team led 7-2 midway through the frame after a
Paris Santacaterina triple. But Louisiana Tech worked its way to the foul line plenty in the first to tie the game, and a three-pointer with less than a minute left gave the home team a one-point lead after one, 12-11.
Kamryn Griffin opened the second quarter with a layup to give her team the lead again, and
Cheyanne Kemp rattled off four-straight to give Central Arkansas a five-point lead. The Sugar Bears followed that up with an 8-4 run to build the lead to nine with just over five minutes to go in the first half. But Louisiana Tech answered with a 9-2 run over the next three minutes to cut the lead back to one score, and that difference would hold until halftime. Central Arkansas went into the locker room holding the Lady Techsters to 27 percent shooting.
But the third quarter was where the game flipped. The teams traded the lead in the early minutes, with another Santacaterina three keeping the game tied at the seven-minute mark. A three-pointer from Louisiana Tech with 5:35 gave the home team a three-point lead, a lead they would never relinquish. In a flash, turnovers and misses piled up for the Sugar Bears, allowing the Lady Techsters to build a ten-point lead by the end of the third quarter. After holding Louisiana Tech to 27 percent shooting in the first half, the home team shot 63 percent in the third quarter.
Despite the defense holding the Lady Techsters to 27 percent shooting in the fourth quarter, the Sugar Bear offense wasn't able to cut into the lead, shooting just 37 percent on the other side. But repeated trips to the line allowed Louisiana Tech to stay on top, as the Lady Techsters were awarded 14 free throws in just the final frame.
Emerie Bohanon brought a ton of energy on the defensive end, nearly six of her 11 minutes in the fourth quarter. She drew three charges, came away with two steals, and hit a three-pointer, giving the Sugar Bears some life throughout the game.
Central Arkansas has one more non-conference game on tap before Christmas, heading up to Missouri State on December 22
nd. The Sugar Bears will battle the regular Bears at 1 p.m. in Springfield, Missouri before having about a week's break before heading to Stetson to start ASUN play.
