Box Score

CONWAY, Ark. – The Southeastern Louisiana women's basketball team recovered from a sluggish first half and bounced back with a 65-55 win over Central Arkansas in Southland Conference action Saturday afternoon at the Farris Center.

The Lady Lions (17-10, 9-5 SLC) clinched a spot in the Southland Conference Tournament with the win and remained atop the SLC East Division. Central Arkansas (6-21, 2-12 SLC), which led by as many as eight in the second half, lost its ninth straight game.

“We were definitely flat in the first half after two long road trips,” Southeastern head coach Lori Davis Jones commented. “We're very pleased at the toughness that we showed in the second half. Winning in the road is never easy, but we were able to battle through adversity and get another tough victory away from Hammond.”

Southeastern senior forward Kristy Carlin posted her fifth double-double of the season, finishing with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Carlin was joined in double figures by junior wing Quantae Thomas with 13 points and senior guard Bethany Sinclair with 12 points. The Lady Lions had a dominant 50-35 rebounding advantage behind the efforts of Carlin and junior forward Zevy Ivory, who pulled down a season-high 10 rebounds.

The Lady Lions hit six three-pointers in the win. Southeastern now has hit 208 treys as a team this season, breaking the SLC single-season record of 204 set by Texas State and UTSA.

Central Arkansas was paced by freshman guard Nakeia Guiden with 14 points, while sophomore center Laura Beth Anderson added 13 points.

Southeastern trailed by five at the break, but battled back to take its first lead of the second half on a three-point play by Ivory with 10:40 left. Over the next five minutes, Southeastern went on a 13-7 run, with Sinclair scoring to put the Lady Lions up, 53-46, with 5:21 left.

UCA mounted one last charge, tying the game at 53 with 2:03 on a score by Guiden. Southeastern ratcheted up the defensive intensity, as Thomas broke the tie with a free throw with 1:46 left. The Lady Lions would not trail again, as they outscored UCA, 12-2, the rest of the way.

Both teams struggled on the offensive end in the first half, as UCA took a 23-18 lead into the break. The Lady Lions shot just 28 percent (7-for-25) from the floor in the opening half, while also committing 12 turnovers. UCA was just slightly better, hitting 32.3 percent (10-for-31) from the floor in the opening 20 minutes.

Southeastern will be back in action on Wednesday, hosting McNeese State at 7 p.m. in the University Center.