CONWAY, Ark. – Central Arkansas women's basketball couldn't find late offense against Florida Gulf Coast, falling 63-52 Thursday night. The Sugar Bears were competitive the entire night, cutting the lead to two before the Eagles were able to pull away at the end.
Central Arkansas moves to 11-9 overall and 4-4 in ASUN games with the loss.
Shae Littleford led the way with 17 points,
Bree Stephens added 16, but cold shooting in the fourth quarter left the Sugar Bears just a little short at the final buzzer.
Both offenses were flying in the first quarter, as both teams wanted a fast start. FGCU opened with a 5-0 run but Littleford answered with five-straight of her own to knot the score. The Eagles scored five more unanswered, and Central Arkansas responded with a pair of threes to take a one-point lead. Each side scored again before the media timeout, and Central Arkansas led 13-12 midway through the period.
Laylah Reese hit a three to push the lead to four, but FGCU answered to keep it close, and a late three by the Eagles tied the score after the first.
As frenetic as the first quarter felt, the second quarter had similar energy, but significantly fewer results. Both teams continued to push the tempo and look for shots, but for a good chunk of the second, nothing fell. It took nearly four minutes for either side to put anything in the hoop, with FGCU's first score coming at the 6:10 mark. Free throws stretched the deficit to seven before Central Arkansas was able to get the lid off the basket, but more points were tough to come by for both teams. The Eagles claimed the second quarter 11-5, with neither side shooting better than 30 percent in the frame. But as poorly as the Sugar Bears had shot so far, the deficit being only six felt like an acceptable margin.
The offenses settled back down in the third, with both sides coming out of halftime looking to make a difference. Central Arkansas did a good job keeping within striking distance, not letting the lead get to double-figures until the midway point of the quarter. And while the lead grew as much as 13, the Sugar Bears continued to fight to get it back down, cracking it back to nine on a Stephens and-one with just under two minutes left in the quarter. Stephens hit a three later in the third to cut it to seven, and a basket by the Eagles at the end had the teams separated by nine going to the fourth. Stephens was a major factor in the third, scoring eight points to keep the home team from letting control completely slip away.
Jenna Cook started the fourth with a fast-break score to trim it to seven, and a three-ball by Stephens had the Sugar Bears on a 5-0 run to start the fourth, with the margin slashed to four. Stephens added to the run a couple of possessions later to get the lead down to two, and it felt like the momentum was swinging in the direction of Central Arkansas. FGCU stopped the bleeding with a midrange jumper, but that score was answered by the Sugar Bears. The sides went shot for shot for a couple of possessions, until a Sugar Bear turnover allowed the Eagles to climb back up to six, then eight, and eventually nine. Needing some late-game heroics, the Sugar Bears just couldn't find a shot maker late, eventually succumbing to the Eagles.
The Sugar Bears have a quick turnaround for Saturday, welcoming Stetson to the Farris Center as the first game of a double-header with the men's team. Tip-off against the Hatters is set for 1 p.m.
