HAMMOND, La. – Central Arkansas outscored Southeastern Louisiana, 34-16, over the second and third quarters on the way to a 60-54 victory in Southland Conference women's basketball action Wednesday night at the University Center.
Southeastern (4-6, 3-4 Southland) shot 80.0 percent (8-for-10) from the floor in the final quarter, but the offensive lull over the first two quarters was too much to overcome. Central Arkansas (4-10, 2-4 Southland) held off the late surge to earn its first league road win and first win in Hammond since 2016-17.
The loss spoiled a career night for senior wing
Morgan Carrier. The New Iberia, Louisiana native scored a career-high 25 points, sinking 8-for-10 field goal attempts – including 5-of-7 from behind the arc.
Carrier was one of two Lady Lions to score in double figures.
Natalie Kelly narrowly missed her first double-double in a Southeastern uniform, contributing 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds.
Breonca Ducksworth and
Hailey Giaratano added eight points apiece for SLU.
The visiting Sugar Bears were led by Lucy Ibeh, who posted a team-high 19 points and seven rebounds. Savanna Walker pitched in with 12 points for UCA to join Ibeh in double figures.
After UCA took a 7-2 lead early on, SLU held Central Arkansas scoreless for a five-minute stretch. A Carrier trey capped an 11-0 run and the Lady Lions went into the second period up, 17-10.
A bucket by
Kacey Bradford in the opening minute of the second quarter was the lone field goal of the period for SLU, who were limited to three points in the quarter. The quarter featured a 6:20 stretch where neither team scored and the Lady Lions went into halftime with a 20-19 advantage.
Central Arkansas took control of the game in the third quarter. The Sugar Bears shot 58.8 percent (10-17) from the floor in the quarter and outscored SLU, 25-13, on the way to taking a 44-33 lead into the final quarter.
Ducksworth and Carrier got hot from the floor over the final 10 minutes to threaten the visitors. A three by Carrier pulled SLU within 52-49 with 1:32 remaining. However, Ibeh answered with a tough leaner to make it a two-possession game with just under a minute left.
UCA would add to its lead on a pair of Walker free throws, but Southeastern wasn't done just yet. A three by Carrier and a layup by Ducksworth sandwiched around a Walker free throw brought SLU within, 57-54 with 20 seconds left. However, Carley Hudspeth sank 3-of-4 free throw shots in the final seconds to ice the victory.
Up Next
Southeastern will continue its six-game home stand on Saturday, hosting New Orleans at 1 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN+ and can also be heard on KSLU-FM (90.9), online at
www.LionSports.net/listenlive and via the Lions Gameday Experience and TuneIn Radio apps.
Alexius Horne will be Saturday's Spotlight Player of the Game. The first 150 fans will receive a trading card featuring the Baton Rouge, Louisiana native courtesy of PRIDE.
TICKETS
For ticket information, please contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit
www.LionSports.net/tickets. Southeastern is implementing mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2020-21 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail or text message in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Women's Basketball, follow @LionUpWBB on Twitter, like /SoutheasternWBB on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics has instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events, effective with the start of football season. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit
www.LionSports.net/clear.
