UCA guard Aubrey Ball scored a season-high 23 points and hit 7-of-9 three pointers as the Bears scraped past McNeese State 76-75 Thursday night in Lake Charles, LA.

With the win, the Bears moved to 11th place in the Southland Conference standings with a 2-6 SLC record and 5-14 overall record. Stephen F. Austin leads the conference with a 19-2 record and an undefeated, 8-0 mark in conference play.

The Junior from Carrollton, Texas had a previous season-high of 12 points against Incarnate Word on Jan. 16th, but nearly doubled that total against the Cowboys.

“This game was very important coming off of a losing streak, we lost a few at home so we knew we had to steal one on the road,” Ball said. “My teammates made me feel comfortable as they do every night, they just kept telling me to be ready to shoot and that they were looking for me. We believe in playing as a team and when we say together in the huddle that’s what we live by,” he said.

Senior guard DeShone McClure added 14 points while fellow Senior guard LaQuentin Miles had 15 points, five assists and seven rebounds for the Bears. Freshman forward Phabian Glasco contributed five blocks to go along with six rebounds and three assists.

“I have to give this all to my teammates, [Ball] came in and knocked down some big shots for us,” McClure said. “They gave me back my confidence that I have been missing these last few games,” he said.

Miles made the play of the game when he converted a three-point play with one second left, which was the difference in the outcome.

“Coach [Finley] drew up a great play, putting everyone in great position,” Miles said. “Coach has us shooting a ton of free throws in practice and it sure paid off,” he said..

The Bears led by 17 at halftime, but McNeese State came back to gain an 8-point lead with 6:47 left in the 2nd half. Ball hit four three-pointers down the stretch and cut the Cowboy’s lead to one with six seconds left, when McNeese State guard Ledrick Eackles’s missed free throw led to Miles’s game-winning shot.

“When they came back, we kept telling each other to keep fighting,” McClure said. “We refused to lose tonight and it was a good team win for us,” he said.

McNeese State Junior forward Desharick Guidry had a double-double for the Cowboys, with 20 points and 13 rebounds. Eackles added 21 points and four rebounds.

The next game for the Bears is Saturday against the Nicholls State Colonels in Thibodoux, LA. The Colonels are coming off of a 73-72 overtime win against Oral Roberts and are 6-2 in conference play.