FLORENCE – Central Arkansas shot 48.4% from the floor and had four players reach double figures Wednesday night in an 81-72 win over the University of North Alabama men's basketball team. UNA's seventh straight loss give the Lions a 9-19 overall record.
The 2-12 mark in ASUN Conference play also solidifies the No. 6 seed in the West Division for the upcoming conference tournament.
Against the Bears, UNA played most of the game with a freshman and sophomore lineup. Senior guard C.J. Brim went down with an injury midway through the first half and did not return. Fellow starter Jamari Blackmon was also unavailable for the game due to family obligations.
North Alabama trailed by three when Brim left the game. The senior from Tupelo, Miss., went to the floor hard after drawing a foul. He sank both free throws before leaving to make the score 24-21 with 8:35 remaining in the first half.
After a UCA basket, Daniel Ortiz connected from three-point range to make it a two-point game. The Bears then responded with a 9-2 run to stretch the lead to 35-26 at the 4:18 mark. The visitors took a 47-37 lead into the break.
In the second half, UCA led by as many as 15 points. A dunk with 16:28 remaining gave the Bears a 58-43 lead. UNA slowly chipped away at the deficit. Two free throws by Ortiz capped a 15-4 run to cut the deficit to 62-58 midway through the period. The Lions, however, would get no closer.
Central Arkansas responded with a 10-0 run to regain a double-digit lead. UNA would get no closer than six points the rest of the game.
Four days after setting a new UNA Division I scoring record with 27 points against Lipscomb, Ortiz became the Lions' first 30-point performer in Division I play. The freshman for Shreveport, Louisiana, was 6-of-14 from three-point range and finished with a game-high 31 points.
Will Soucie added 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Lions while Brim scored 11 points in just 11:25 of playing time. Freshman Camren Hunter led UCA (10-18 overall, 7-8 ASUN) with 24 points.Â
UNA will close out the regular season Saturday at Jacksonville State. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. at Pete Matthews Coliseum on the JSU campus.
