Sugar Bears
Little Rock comes to town for matchup with Sugar Bears on Saturday
Just fourth home game this season, UCA starts getting ready for conference play with I-40 Showdown against Trojans
CONWAY, Ark. — Back at home for the fourth time this season, and the last time until the start of ASUN games, Central Arkansas faces Little Rock in the sixth iteration of the Governor’s I-40 Showdown on Saturday.
The Sugar Bears and Trojans will tip-off at 1 p.m. in the Farris Center.
UCA (4-2) looks to stay perfect at home this season after dropping a tough road game at No. 9 Kansas State. Losing to another Power 4 squad, the Sugar Bears struggled to find open shots, but will look to move forward as one of the ASUN’s best offenses early in the season.
UCA has leaned heavily on its guard play this season, with its five leading scorers all capable ball-handlers and shooters. Jade Upshaw still leads the team with 16.5 points per game, while Kinley Fisher (12.5) and Leah Mafua (10.2) also average double-figures. The trio has connected on 36 three-pointers, and shoot a combined 41.3 percent.
In addition to the offensive numbers the Sugar Bears are putting up early in the season, the defensive numbers have been outstanding as well.
Kansas State was held to nine points in the fourth quarter, adding them to a list of teams that have been held to at least one single-digit scoring quarter this season, with five of the six Sugar Bear opponents failing to reach the 10-point mark in at least one quarter.
Mafua and Bree Stephens have been terrors on that end of the court, combining for 18 steals and 17 blocks. Mafua has three games this season with multiple blocks and a game with six steals, while Stephens has three games with multiple blocks and three games with multiple steals.
Last season’s meeting with the Trojans was a nail-biter, with the Sugar Bears winning by five in Little Rock. Mafua led the Sugar Bears with 16 points, Upshaw added 13, and UCA recovered from a slow first quarter to win the final three quarters by 14 points.
Over the middle two quarters, the UCA defense held the Trojans to 8-of-28, or 28.5 percent.
This season, Little Rock is off to a 2-5 start, with wins over CBC and Arkansas State. But as always, the Trojans load up a tough non-conference schedules, having also played Auburn, Kansas State and Missouri.
The Trojans most recently got their second win of the season over Arkansas State, defeating the Red Wolves 59-49 in the Jack Stephens Center. Four Trojans logged double-digits, led by Jordan Holman’s 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Holman also notched the double-double, adding 12 boards.
Faith Lee leads the team in scoring on the season, averaging 13.0 points per game. The 5-11 junior also leads the team in shots, putting up 115 shots this season, the only Trojan with more than 65 attempts this season.
As usual, the Trojans don’t emphasize the three-ball, hitting only 18 through seven games on 20 percent shooting. Of players who have taken at least one per game, Little Rock only has one shooter at or above 30 percent.
Tip-off against the Trojans is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday. The game will be streamed on ESPN+, with live stats available online. Fans can also follow the action at 91.3 The Bear, with Steve Owens on the call.
