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MOBILE, Ala. – Southern Miss came back from a nine-point deficit early in the second half and held the University of South Alabama men's basketball team to 33.3 percent shooting in a 57-54 win Monday night at the Mitchell Center.

The Golden Eagles win their second straight overall and sixth straight in the series between the two schools. The Jaguars fall to 3-6.

"Obviously, I'm very disappointed in the outcome, especially losing a home game," USA head coach Matthew Graves said. "You like to protect your home court. We certainly didn't do that tonight. Southern Miss made the big plays down the stretch. Defensively, I thought we did a really good job.

"Allowing a team to only score 57 points and only shoot 37 percent for the game from the floor, we've got to do a much better job on the offensive end. I felt like too many times a lot of guys missed shots around the rim. We're just not a tough physical team right now. We need to be better at that."

South Alabama made just two of its last 12 attempts from the floor, and missed its final four attempts in the last 4:35 of the contest. After shooting 41.4 percent before halftime, the Jags shot just 24.0 percent after the break.

"We had a couple of stretches there in the second half where we were up four, five or six points, then we would go two or three possessions where (we'd have a) bad shot, turnover, two illegal screens, and we missed a couple of layups around the rim. When it's a five-point game with four or five minutes to go and you make a couple of plays and extend the lead to nine or 10, it's a different ballgame. We allowed them to hang around and hang around. They were certainly, without question, the tougher team and made really great plays down the stretch."

A 15-5 run late in the game, capped off with a 3-pointer from Kourtlin Jackson at the 2:36 mark, gave Southern Miss its first lead (52-50) since the 4:04 mark of the first half.

The two teams traded free throws on three consecutive trips down the floor for a 54-54 tie, but Eddie Davis III broke the deadlock with a jumper with 37.4 seconds left, then hit a free throw with 11.4 on the clock for the final margin.

"We need to learn how to win," Graves said. "As awkward as that sounds, we've got to be more confident down the stretch. We can't get tight and tentative. We still need to attack.

"Certain guys got plenty of shots, we just need to have the toughness to take contact, finish at the rim and not allow that to effect the next play. A couple of guys, when they missed one or two or three shots, their body language changed, their demeanor changed and they have to be able to be a lot tougher and fight through that. It's certainly very disappointing."

USA senior Barrington Stevens III (Allen, Texas) set new career highs in points (20) and 3-pointers (6), and led the team in assists (3). His six treys came on just seven attempts.

"I thought Barrington played an outstanding game," Graves noted. "He did a phenomenal job. Unfortunately, we wasted a great performance. He stepped up as a senior should and make some really big baskets for us and did some nice things, but we just have to have more consistency from other guys being able to finish around the basket."

Junior Ken Williams (Houston, Texas), returning after a one-game absence due to injury, was the only other Jag in double-digit points with 14.

Jackson led all scorers with 25 points on 6-for-9 shooting from behind the arc. He also grabbed seven rebounds and had three steals.

"He hit some 3s early, and he was 1-12 coming into the game," Graves said. "Credit to him, he had a career night and made some great plays."

Southern Miss grabbed an early seven-point lead after making five of its first six shots, including three consecutive triples to start the contest. The Jaguars replied with back-to-back treys from Williams and junior Nick Stover (Los Angeles, Calif.).

The Golden Eagles took a seven-point lead midway through the first half, but converted just twice after that, shooting 2 for 14 from the field and missing their last eight shots. The Jaguars put together two 8-0 runs, the final one to end the half and take a 33-27 lead into the break.

South Alabama goes to Samford Friday night for a 7 p.m. contest.

NOTES: Southern Miss is allowing 56.3 points in its six-game win streak over South Alabama, giving up no more than 59 points in any game… Sophomore Nick Davis (Mt. Vernon, Ala.) played 14 minutes in his first game of the year after becoming eligible and scored three points with three rebounds… All 10 Jaguars that got in the game recorded a rebound… Junior Georgi Boyanov (Lovech, Bulgaria) entered the contest second in the Sun Belt Conference in field goal percentage but was held to 0-for-2 shooting; he did record five rebounds and two assists… Since allowing a season-high 98 points to Belmont on Nov. 23, USA is giving up 62.4 points per game, including 60 or fewer twice… The Jaguars' 24.0 second-half shooting percentage is a new season-low; the team is converting 25.9 percent after intermission in their last two games after hitting 50.7 percent in their previous three… USA shot 56.3 percent (9-16) from 3-point land in the first half but 20.0 percent (2-10) in the second… The Jags didn't attempt a free throw until the 9:21 mark of the second half and went 7 for 9 for the game… South Alabama had new season lows in turnovers forced (12, tie) and steals (4) after averaging 19.3 and 10.3, respectively, in its previous three outings.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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