Bears
Bears struggle shooting outside while Queens red hot, getting 63-47 win
UCA doesn’t connect on a three-pointer until late in the first half, but Royals didn’t have same problem
CONWAY, Ark. — Central Arkansas struggled from the perimeter while the Queens Royals were on fire Wednesday night. The result was a 63-47 victory for the second-place Royals in ASUN action at the Farris Center.
Queens (15-9, 8-3) connected 14 times from the arc out of a whopping 45 attempts. Senior Chris Ashby went 9 of 26 to break his own single-game school record of eight in the Royals’ Division I era. Ashby then missed his final nine three-point attempts after setting the record.
UCA, on the other hand, did not make a three until the 3:15 mark of the first half, and it was the only one it would make. The injury riddled Bears, playing without five players including their top two scorers, finished 1 of 21 from the arc and shot 33.3 percent overall.
“Two weeks ago, we had an already depleted basketball team,” said UCA head coach John Shulman. “And then two weeks forward, you just grabbed 33 points out of our lineup, Layne (Taylor)you’re out, Elias (Cato) you’re out. Take the leading scorers at 18 and 15 (points per game) off any roster, and you’re not going to score the ball as well.
“That’s why every play is the most important play of the game. We can’t have lapses. We have to play so perfect. It’s kind of like a pitcher who has lost his steam. His placement has got to be perfect. If it’s not, that thing is going yard. And it’s hard to play a perfect basketball game.
“But I feel way different than I did after the UNA game (last Saturday). Not even close. UNA made 14 threes against us and scored 95 points. Queens made 14 threes and scored 63 points. They scored 14 points in the paint. You keep someone to 63 points, you should have a chance to win.
“But our guys are in a really tough spot right now. And I told them in the locker room, these are going to be special times for you. Remember the time when everybody was hurt, then Layne and Elias got hurt? And we still stuck together? I don’t see any bad attitudes, I don’t see anybody not playing hard. We went 1 for 21 from the three-point line and we still hung in there.”
The Bears held the Royals scoreless for nearly six minutes to open the game but Queens found its range from the perimeter. The Royals made eight three-pointers in the first half, with Ashby going 5 of 11. A 12-0 run gave the Royals a 17-6 lead after trailing 6-2. That margin would reach as much as 18 points before halftime.
Sophomore Brayden Fagbemi scored five straight on a layup and a three-pointer, UCA’s first and only three of the half, with 3:00 to play. But Queens canned two more to take a 34-18 lead to the locker room. UCA would eventually cut the Queens’ lead to 13 points with six minutes left in the game but could get no closer.
UCA sophomore Nehemiah Turner, a 6-foot-10 sophomore, outplayed Queens’ 7-foot center Malcolm, who entered the game leading the nation in blocked shots. Turner tied his career high with12 points, and also had 7 rebounds, 2 assists and a block in 28 minutes of action. Wilson was scoreless with 1 block in 16 minutes.
Sophomore Brayden Fagbemi had 12 points and 3 blocked shots, while sophomore Michael Evbagharu had 7 points and tied his career high with a game-high 10 rebounds.
UCA played the second half even 29-29, but had too much of a hole to dig out of. The Bears shot 41.9 percent in the final 20 minutes as opposed to their 24.1 percent in the opening half.
“I told the team, I’m not disappointed in them, I’m proud of them,” said Shulman. “I’m proud of their effort. We keep on battling, and go 1 for 21 and keep on battling and keep on battling. We guarded them and guarded them. But when you lose a lot of scoring like we have, it makes it really difficult. But I’m proud of them.”
The Bears return to the road on Saturday, facing Austin Peay for the second time in Clarksville, Tenn. Game time is approximately 4 p.m., following a women’s game.
