WBB looks to bounce back against UCA Saturday

ABILENE - The Wildcat women's basketball team returns to the friendly confines of the Teague Center on Saturday for the first of two matchups this season with the Central Arkansas Sugar Bears. It will be the last home matchup with UCA as members of the Southland Conference; ACU will join the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in July this year, while UCA heads to the Atlantic Sun (A-SUN) this summer. The Wildcats (9-3, 2-1 SLC) will look to bounce back after a road loss Wednesday to Sam Houston. ACU has not lost two straight games yet this season. Tipoff is at 1 p.m. and will air on ESPN+ and on 102.7 The Bear.

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SERIES HISTORY

This will be the 14th meeting between the schools, with ACU holding a slight 7-6 lead. However, the Wildcats are on a roll against the Sugar Bears, winning each of the last five games. The last lost came in the 2018 Southland Conference Tournament quarterfinals in Katy, Texas. ACU returned the favor the following year in the tournament, winning 82-54 in the quarterfinals. ACU have won each of the last three contests by an average of 20 points. It will be the last home matchup with UCA as members of the Southland Conference; ACU will join the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in July this year, while UCA heads to the Atlantic Sun (A-SUN) this summer.

ACU STORYLINES

• GREAT START: The Wildcats are off to a stellar 9-3 start, and come in receiving votes in the College Insider Mid Major Top 25 poll.
• TOUGH SHOOTING NIGHT IN HUNTSVILLE: ACU dropped its last outing to the Sam Houston Bearkats on Wednesday, 88-72. The three-point shooting (2-14) and the turnovers (22) proved to be the difference.
• DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE: Senior Alyssa Adams has recorded four double-doubles this season, including a three-game stretch vs. UAB, at Stetson, and at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The San Antonio native has seven for her career. She becomes the third Division I player for the Wildcats to record three consecutive double-doubles. Suzzy Dimba did so on Jan. 22, 24, and 26 in 2015, and Sydney Shelstead followed up a month later, on Feb. 21, 25, and 28. Adams came ever so close to adding two more to that stretch each of the last two games (11 pts, 9 reb vs. SLU / 27 pts, 9 reb at SHSU).
• COACH GOODENOUGH'S MILESTONES: Head coach Julie Goodenough earned her 460th career win UT Permain, and now has a 466 wins in her hall-of-fame career and 177 with ACU.
• SHARP SHOOTERS: ACU's 326 three-point field goals attempted rank 11th nationally, while the 117 three-pointers made rank ninth in the country.

NEWS: ACU headed to the WAC!

SCOUTING CENTRAL ARKANSAS

• The Sugar Bears (3-9, 1-3 SLC) got back on the winning track last Saturday against Nicholls, doing what they do on defense to win the game 56-42.
• The team has had one of the great defenses every year in the Southland Conference under ninth-year coach Sandra Rushing. UCA is allowing 67 points per game this season, but held Nicholls to just 32% shooting from the field and forced 20 turnovers.
• Jalisa Outlaw leads the way in scoring at 13.2 points per game, while Lucy Ibeh is second on the team at 10.6 per contest. Those are the only two Sugar Bears averaging double figures this season.
• UCA has struggled on offense, averaging just 52.2 points per game. The team shoots it at a 33% clip from the floor.