No. 7 UCA vs. No. 6 Lamar
WHEN 7:30 p.m. Central
WHERE Merrell Center, Houston
RECORDS Central Arkansas 16-15, 10-8 Southland Conference; Lamar 19-12, 11-7
RADIO KUCA-FM, 91.3, in Conway
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS
CENTRAL ARKANSAS
POS. NAME, HT, YR;PPG;RPG
G Jordan Howard, 5-11, Sr.;25.8;3.7
G Mathieu Kamba, 6-5, Sr.;14.2;6.2
G Matthew Mondesir, 6-5, Fr.;3.2;1.5
G DeAndre Jones, 6-5, Jr.;6.2;3.7
C Hayden Koval, 7-0, Fr.;8.8;5.4
COACH Russ Pennell (33-87 in fourth season at Central Arkansas, 142-153 overall in eighth season)
LAMAR
POS. NAME, HT, YR;PPG;RPG
F Colton Weisbrod, 6-5, Sr.;15.0;8.1
G Joey Frenchwood, 6-1, Sr.;7.8;2.5
F James Harrison, 6-5, Sr.;8.8;2.3
F Josh Nzeakor, 6-8, Jr.;12.1;7.4
G Zjori Bosha, 6-5, Sr.;9.4;5.2
COACH Tic Price (65-65 in fifth season at Lamar, 232-187 in 15th season overall)
TEAM COMPARISON
UCA;;LU
81.8;Points for;76.6
79.1;Points against;69.5
-3.3;Rebound margin;+2.2
+1.1;Turnover margin;+3.9
45.6;FG pct.;43.4
36.3;3-pt. pct.;35.1
73.5;FT pct.;66.3
CHALK TALK UCA clinched its second consecutive Sun Belt Conference Tournament berth with an 88-70 victory over Sam Houston State on Feb. 28, and the Bears finished the season with their third consecutive victory, 61-58, over Northwestern (La.) State on Saturday. ... UCA has yet to win a Southland Tournament game since the program joined the conference for the 2006-2007 season. The Bears are 0-3 in Southland Tournament appearances, and they lost 77-69 to Sam Houston State in the first round last season. ... Senior guard Jordan Howard was named Southland Conference Player of the Year on Monday. The 5-11 Chandler, Ariz., native led the conference in scoring (25.8 points per game), which ranks third nationally, and he became the all-time NCAA Division I career scoring leader in Arkansas with a game-high 28 points in that 88-70 victory over Sam Houston State. ... Lamar last won the Southland Tournament in 2012, and the Cardinals won four consecutive games before they finished the season with a 69-60 loss at McNeese State on Saturday. ... UCA has the Southland's third-best scoring offense (81.5 points allowed per game), which ranks 32nd nationally, and Lamar has the conference's fourth-best scoring defense (69.5 points allowed per game). ... Lamar senior forward Colton Weisbrod ranks 10th in the conference with 15.0 points per game. ... Central Arkansas beat Lamar 100-91 on the road in double overtime in their only previous meeting this season on Jan. 6.
Sports on 03/07/2018