HAMMOND, La. – Southeastern Louisiana closes out its 2016-17 home schedule when the Lions host Southland Conference rival Central Arkansas Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the University Center.

    The Lions (14-14, 7-8 Southland) are 10-3 at home this season but have dropped their past two in the University Center, including a 60-52 loss to Stephen F. Austin on Saturday.

    Southeastern will look to regain momentum heading into the final three games of the regular season. The Lions are currently tied for seventh with Central Arkansas (8-20, 7-8) in the Southland.

    The Bears, who have lost their past two overall, took a 68-66 win over Southeastern in Conway, Ark. on Feb. 4 when junior guard Jordan Howard hit a 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds left. The loss overshadowed a 24-point effort for Lion sophomore guard Marlain Veal, who also had a career-high five 3-pointers and added seven rebounds and five assists. Junior forward Eddy Polanco contributed 18 points and six rebounds while senior center Dominic Nelson had seven rebounds.

    Howard finished with 14 points to lead the Bears. Senior guard Derreck Brooks had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Mathieu Kamba added 13 points and Ethan Lee 10.

    "We'll look to bounce back," Southeastern head coach Jay Ladner said. "We have three games left and we still have everything in front of us as far as our goals. Central Arkansas presents us with a great challenge. They are a really talented team and Jordan Howard presents a number of problems for us. We'll have to play better than we played up there to have an opportunity to win. It's a critical game for both teams. Both teams are tied and this would give us some separation if we would win the game."
    
    Wednesday's game is a Cane's Challenge. If the Lions score 60 points or more, fans can redeem their game ticket or student coupon at their local participating Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers for a free combo with the purchase of another of equal or greater value.

    The Southeastern Channel will provide a video stream of the game at  www2.southeastern.edu/ thesoutheasternchannel/lionslive/. It will also be broadcast live in the Hammond area on KSLU-FM (90.9), online at www.LionSports.net/ listenlive and via the TuneIn Radio app. Live stats will be available at www.LionSports.net.

    In Saturday's loss, Southeastern cut an 11-point deficit to three in the final two minutes but Stephen F. Austin held on for its fifth straight win over the Lions.

    Junior guard Davon Hayes finished with a team-high 13 points for the Lions while sophomore forward Moses Greenwood had 12. Nelson and junior forward James Currington had five rebounds apiece.

    Hayes, who has a team-high 19 double-digit scoring games, and Veal are both averaging 13.1 points per game Veal is also tied for fifth in the conference in assists (4.5 apg) and is ninth in steals (1.6 spg). Nelson (4.0 ppg) is fourth in the league and tied for 43rd nationally in blocks (2.0 bpg) while ranking 11th in the league in rebounding (6.7 rpg). Currington (8.1 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and junior guard Jabbar Singleton (4.4 ppg, 68 assists) are the other projected starters for the Lions.

    Southeastern goes into the game averaging 70.8 points per game on 44.9 percent shooting. The Lions are fourth in the league in 3-point field goal percentage at 37.2 percent. Southeastern, which has been inconsistent at the line in recent games, is shooting 67.7 percent on free throws.

    Southeastern leads the conference in scoring defense (67.9 ppg) while ranking second in field goal percentage defense (42.9 percent). The Lions are also second in the league in rebounding margin (plus 4.0), ranking fourth with 36.5 rebounds and third with 32.3 allowed.

    Central Arkansas is averaging 74.6 points on 44.0 percent from the field. The Bears lead the Southland in free throw percentage at 73.6 percent while shooting a third-best 37.4 percent on 3s. UCA is giving up 83.6 points on 46.1 percent shooting, including 39.2 percent on 3s. The Bears are pulling down 35.7 rebounds while allowing 37.8.

    Howard, a two-time Southland Player of the Week in 2017, ranks third in the conference in scoring (19.8 ppg), while leading in both free throw (.895) and 3-point field goal (.482) percentage. Brooks is eighth in rebounding (7.2 rpg) and 10th in scoring (14.5). Kamba (13.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg), sophomore forward/center Tanner Schmit (4.9 ppg) and junior forward Ethan Lee (3.3 ppg) are the other projected starters for the Bears.

    Central Arkansas is coming off an 84-61 defeat at New Orleans on Saturday. Brooks led the Bears with 14 points and seven rebounds. Kamba added nine points and Howard eight.

    Southeastern will look for a season sweep of Nicholls when the Lions travel to Thibodaux Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. tip-off.