Feb 10th, 2007 09:06PM
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By STEVE EAST
UCA SID

CONWAY — The supporting cast for the University of Central Arkansas Sugar Bears was a little better than the one for the Sam Houston State Bearkats on Saturday night and it resulted in a 73-68 victory for the Sugar Bears at the Farris Center.

UCA senior Caronica Randle went toe to toe with SHSU’s Ada Wells all night and the two matched numbers. Randle finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Wells had 23 points and 12 boards, hitting 10 of 14 from the field.

The difference was UCA had three other players in double figures while Sam Houston had none. Junior Alex Velasquez came off the bench to score 15 points for the Sugar Bears (10-13, 4-7), while starting guards Renita Dobbins and Mariesha Piggee added 13 and 12 points, respectively.

UCA shot poorly from the field for the second straight game, but made the most of 22 free-throw attempts. The Sugar Bears made 17 of those (77.3 percent), with Dobbins making 4 of 5 and Randle 6 of 8.

Dobbins, a senior point guard from Little Rock, sealed it with a pair at the line with four seconds left. Dobbins added 7 assists and 4 rebounds, while Piggee had 6 rebounds and 3 steals.

UCA led 34-32 at the half after Randle put back a rebound in the final seconds after the Bearkats had tied it on a jumper by Lydia Gonzales with 1:19 remaining.

SHSU opened the second half with consecutive baskets to take a 36-34 lead. With Wells doing most of the work inside, the Bearkats led as late as the 8:45 mark after a Wells three-point play.

But the Sugar Bears got a three-pointer from Dobbins for a six-point cushion with 4:50 left and held on for the win. 

Neither team shot well from the field, resulting in 51 rebounds for each team. UCA had six players with at least six rebounds and eight players with at least one assist.

UCA travels to Beaumont, Texas, to take on Lamar University on Thursday.