CHARLESTON, S.C. – Charleston Southern held Central Arkansas to 26 percent shooting in the first half to build a 17-point advantage and led by as many as 27 in the second half en route to a 80-67 victory at the Buc Dome on Tuesday night. CSU senior guard Saah Nimley matched a career-high with 27 points and moved into tenth place on the program's career scoring list in the win.

CSU (3-1) led 41-24 at halftime and rode Nimley's three-point shooting to put the game away with a 20-10 run out of intermission. Nimley scored 20 of his 27 points in the second half, and connected on three of his five threes in the opening juncture as the Bucs took a 61-34 lead with 13:13 left. Senior Will Saunders continued an outstanding start to the campaign with 16 points and a team-high seven rebounds, while Cedrick Bowen chipped in 12 points.

Central Arkansas (0-5) placed four players in double figures scoring, paced by 18 from freshman guard Jordan Howard. The Bears could not get on track offensively in the opening half, though, as the Bucs' tight man-to-man defense stymied a young UCA team.

CSU head coach Barclay Radebaugh was pleased with his team's response from its first loss of the season, and knows more steps forward must be made as the Bucs head to Tallahassee to meet Florida State on Friday.

"I thought we played really well in the first half, especially defensively," Radebaugh said. "The second half wasn't quite as good. We got tired and guys lost focus at times. We've got to keep improving and finish out games. I'm thankful for the win but not happy with the overall performance."

Nimley found his shooting stroke in the second half for a second straight game to help CSU pull away. He recovered from a 0-for-5 first half effort to drill 5-of-8 attempts from beyond the arc after halftime. Nimley answered a Howard triple with his first of the night at the 18:51 mark of the second half, sparking a 18-7 burst that accounted for CSU's largest lead of the night.

CSU junior Aaron Wheeler slammed home a two-handed dunk during the spurt as well. Saunders buried one of his four treys, and Paul Gombwer contributed two free throws to cap the surge and put the Bucs on top, 61-34, with 13:13 left.

Central Arkansas answered with a 12-1 run to close within 62-46, but Nimley dismissed any thoughts of a comeback with six points in a 57-second span. He knocked down a three, connected on a free throw and dropped in a jumper in the lane to push the CSU lead back over 20. Nimley accounted for CSU's final points with two free throws in the final minute, matching the career-high in scoring he set in January 2013 against Gardner-Webb. His 1,259 career points are now 10^th all-time at CSU, just 30 behind teammate Arlon Harper for ninth.

"We probably don't win tonight without Saah," Radebaugh said. "We played a lot of our newer players tonight and they made some mistakes in execution. Saah is such a veteran and playmaker so it's a great feeling to have him out there with some of the new players we are trying to implement."

Nimley opened the scoring with a floater in the paint to start CSU on a 6-0 opening flurry that included four Gombwer free throws. With Central Arkansas unable to generate any rhythm against CSU's aggressive defense, the Bucs extended their cushion to 28-12 by the 8:41 mark of the first half.

The Bucs limited the Bears to 3-of-15 shooting to open the game, and had eight different players score in the first half. Junior Jabbar Washington came off the bench to give CSU one of its first double-digit leads of the night with a three from the right side. Classmate Reuben King's steal led to a Danny Upchurch layup several possessions later, giving CSU a 16-point edge.

One of several Bowen jams on the night, and back-to-back threes by Saunders in a span of 27 seconds, staked CSU to a 36-18 lead – its largest of the first half – with 3:38 remaining. UCA scored six straight points to narrow its deficit to 12, but Upchurch buried a three in front of the first half buzzer to send the Bucs into halftime on top by 17.

"We had a chance to really put this game much further out of reach at the free-throw line," said Radebaugh after CSU shot 57 percent (17-of-30) at the charity stripe. "We played really well in the first half but not nearly as well in the second. We are thankful for the win, we're at 3-1 now and we've got to get ready for a good Florida State team Friday."

CSU faces off against Florida State for the second straight season and the third time in four years on Friday night at 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3.