22 Jan 2025 Bears face Governors tonight at Farris Center

CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas Bears will be back at the Farris Center tonight for the first time since Jan. 4 when they take on the Austin Peay Governors. Tip-off is set for 6:30 p.m. on Scottie Pippen Court.

UCA (5-14, 1-5) played four consecutive road games, all in the state of Florida, over the past two weeks. They finished up with a hard-fought 72-62 loss at second-place Jacksonville on Saturday.

The Bears are 5-2 in home games this season, including three overtime games, two that went to double overtime. UCA will play its next three ASUN games at the Farris Center, including against No. 1 Lipscomb at 1 p.m. Saturday and next Wednesday against ASUN newcomer West Georgia.

The Governors (7-12, 2-4) lost 88-60 at Lipscomb last Saturday. In their previous game on Thursday, they broke a three-game losing streak with a 97-90 overtime win at home against Eastern Kentucky. APSU is 4-3 in home games this season and 2-8 in road matchups.

APSU leads the series with UCA 3-1, including sweeping both games last season. The Governors, who finished 10-6 in league play a year ago, won the first meeting 94-71 in Clarksville, Tenn., then won 77-67 at the Farris Center in the second game.

APSU is last in the ASUN in scoring offense, averaging 66.9 points per game. UCA sits seventh at 71.8 points per game. Both teams struggle with shooting percentage, with the Bears at 39.1 percent and the Governors at 39.4. UCA is fourth in the conference in three-pointers made per game at 9.1, while APSU is eighth at 8.0.

The Bears are the better rebounding team, averaging 37.4 per game (fourth) while the Governors average 32.3 (11th).

Individually, UCA has two scorers in the Top 10 in freshman Layne Taylor in third (17.6) and senior Elias Cato in 10th (15.3).  APSU’s leading scorer is North Carolina State transfer L.J. Thomas at 15.2 points per game. Taylor is tied for first in three-pointers made with 62. Freshman Brayden Fagbemi is fifth in the ASUN in assists at 4.1 per game for the Bears. 

CONWAY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
“OFF THE CLOCK” EVENT

The Conway Chamber of Commerce will host an “Off The Clock” event at the Farris Center on Thursday night, beginning at 5 p.m. on the upper deck on the north end of the Farris Center. They will be giving away 500 free tickets in the lobby on a first-come, first-served basis. The event will feature free food and drinks from various Conway restaurants.