Nicholls St. 68, Cent. Arkansas 51

Published Feb. 25, 2010 4:13 a.m. ET

foxsports

Anatoly Bose scored 23 points to lead four Nicholls State players in double figures as the Colonels defeated Central Arkansas 68-51 on Wednesday night.

Bose had seven rebounds and went 6-for-6 from the free throw line and Nicholls State (9-17, 5-8 Southland Conference) forced 16 turnovers and had eight steals to win its second straight. It was Bose's 17th game this season with 20 or more points.

The victory, combined with losses by McNeese State, Lamar and Northwestern State, put the Colonels in a three-way tie for the final conference tournament berth. Nicholls State has three more regular-season games.

The Colonels led by eight points or more in the second half.

Justin Ayers added 11 points and Kellan Carter and Fred Hunter had 10 points each for Nicholls State.

Mitch Rueter scored 12 for Central Arkansas (8-19, 2-11) and Tadre Sheppard added 10 points.