The UCA Sugar Bears moved onto the ASUN semi-finals after battering Bellarmine on March 8 with a 20-point lead, 77-57.
The Sugar Bears (22-8, ASUN 15-3) dominated the home game with quick moves, strong defense and on-point shooting skills against Bellarmine (18-15, ASUN 8-10).
Tony Kemper, coach of the women’s basketball team, said the game was a “Really good start to the tournament, especially after starting kind of slow offensively, you know, to kind of put the hammer down.”
UCA started strong by scoring the first points of the game with senior guard Leah Mafua’s lay-up. Bellarmine answered back almost every shot throughout the first, ending the quarter on a close note. With the help of senior forward Bree Stephens and senior guard Jade Upshaw’s back-to-back three-pointers, UCA pushed ahead by 1-point, 15-14.
Bellarmine put up a fierce fight at the start of the second quarter, scoring two jumpers and a free throw within the first two minutes. The Sugar Bears were ready to respond with three layups shortly after, triggering UCA to fight back against the Knights. By the end of the first half, UCA was up by three, 33-30.
The ASUN quarterfinal conference game was fueled by the Sugar Bears’ need for revenge after their loss against Bellarmine on Jan. 4.
Upshaw said, “We really wanted to win this game, especially because this game matters the most… And so that game, we talked about all the time how it kind of just messed with us, and it left us sick. So we definitely wanted to get them back. And we did that. We sent them home.”
UCA, focused on making a larger gap, powered through in the third quarter. Upshaw led the way with a layup and a free throw that was shortly followed by two solid three-pointers by Stephens, assisted by Mafua and Upshaw. Although Bellarmine tried to keep up, UCA dominated the court. Senior forward Cheyenne Banks supported the team with two layups and two free throws. Senior guard Randrea Wright secured UCA’s last 2 points of the third quarter, pushing the Sugar Bears into a 9-point lead, 56-47.
Kemper and his team were well aware of the difficulty they would face against Bellarmine, but they knew they were ready for the challenge.
“I think they [the Sugar Bears] wanted to play Bellarmine just because they wanted to, you know, they wanted the challenge. And that’s the kind of team that you want to coach,” Kemper said.
The Sugar Bears were motivated to maintain their lead with sophomore forward Elizabeth Abiara bringing the heat with a layup assisted by Upshaw. Upshaw quickly responded with a layup of her own after an assist from Mafua. Stephens also continued her streak of shots with her fourth three-pointer of the night. Stephens averages 5.3 points and 6.2 rebounds and holds a 39% FG for the 2024-25 season. As Bellarmine depended on free throws and was forced into long shots by UCA’s stonewall defense, the Sugar Bears steadily built up their 20-point lead.
With upcoming games, UCA asks its community to support them. Kemper said, “We need all the help we can get…We need everybody in here because you never know when the next time is going to be to do it.”
Upshaw and her fellow teammates also recognize the energy the community brings with their support in the stands.
“I think to be able to play in front of our community and our fellow students, it’s different, and it brings a different energy,” Upshaw said. “Bellarmine couldn’t have that, and so it’s a privilege to be able to host these games.”
With the Sugar Bears’ win, UCA will host the ASUN semifinal for the second year in a row against the Lipscomb University Bisons at 6:30 p.m. March 11.
The UCA Sugar Bears did more than survive; “we thrived,” Kemper said.