Game Notes

MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama men's basketball team will host one of the top teams in the nation in Middle Tennessee Saturday at the Mitchell Center.

Tipoff is set for 7:05 p.m. Fans can listen on 99.5 FM or 995thejag.com/listen, watch on JagNationTV.com, and get updates via live stats on USAJaguars.com or on Twitter at @SouthAlaMBK.

The Blue Raiders enter the contest with a 7-1 record and are 11th in the nation in RPI. Last season they upset No. 2 seed Michigan State 90-81 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

"Middle Tennessee is extremely well coached and I'm impressed by the pace by which they do things offensively and how hard they play defensively," USA head coach Matthew Graves said. "It's going to be a tremendous challenge to play those guys on Saturday.

"Our mindset for this game is we want to protect our home court. We want to have the best record we can have at home and prioritize winning at home, and we understand this is going to be an extremely tough challenge, but at the same time, we're excited about the opportunity to play one of the best mid-major programs in the country."

South Alabama is 6-1 on the year and is coming off a 78-55 victory at Southern Miss on Wednesday, snapping a six-game losing streak in the series. On Saturday, the Jaguars will attempt to end an eight-game skid to the Blue Raiders dating back to the 2010-11 season.

Senior Georgi Boyanov (Lovech, Bulgaria) and Shaq Calhoun (Rome, Ga.) accounted for over half of the team's point total Wednesday, scoring 23 and 21 points, respectively, and combining for nine 3-pointers in just 13 attempts.

The Jaguars rebounded from a season-high 23-turnover effort last Saturday at Eastern Illinois to post their second-best assist/turnover ratio of the year with 17 assists, including a career-high-tying eight from senior Ken Williams (Houston, Texas), and just 10 turnovers. USA is 5-0 this season when recording more assists than turnovers.

 "I think our team is starting to understand that if we take care of the ball and take good shots, we have a chance to be a really good offensive team, as evidenced by our early-season success," Graves said. "The one game we did not play well, we turned it over at a very high rate. The proof is in the stats and you can see that we didn't achieve what we wanted when we turned the ball over."

Middle Tennessee has been even more successful in that department, ranking 16th in the nation, and is fifth in Division I in turnovers per game (9.9).

"Against Middle Tennessee, that will be a tall task, because they do a great job in their 1-3-1 half-court defense, their 2-3 zone is very active and their man defense is very physical. We must take care of the basketball in order to have a chance to win the ballgame."

The Blue Raiders picked up their seventh win of the year Wednesday with a 77-62 victory at Ole Miss.  MT jumped out to a 48-19 lead at halftime and shot 56.3 percent from 3-point land.

"The more I watch them on film, I'm extremely impressed," Graves stated. "They've got three guys that can really shoot the ball on the perimeter and a post presence. I think (Reggie) Upshaw is one of the most versatile players you're going to find. To have a 4-man with a 3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, is outstanding. I really like the way he plays."

JaCorey Williams leads a group of three players averaging 14 points or better on the year. The transfer from Arkansas is putting up 20.1 points per contest, despite being held to a season-low 10 at Ole Miss.

"Williams gives them an added dimension of a low-post scorer with his versatility and athleticism," Graves noted. "He really feeds off their perimeter shooters."

Giddy Potts (14.4 ppg) and Reggie Upshaw (14.1 ppg) round out Middle Tennessee's double-digit scorers. Both are shooting greater than 50 percent from the floor, and Upshaw tops the team in rebounding (6.9 rpg).

"Upshaw is really the key to their team because he does a little bit of everything, from passing to rebounding, and if you fall asleep on him, he'll score 15-to-20 points on you.

"They present a lot of challenges because they can beat you in a lot of different ways," Graves stated. "They can beat you with their defense and score in transition, they can run very good sets and counters and get their post players involved, or their perimeter guys can make 3s at a high level. This is by far the biggest test that our defense has faced this year."

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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