MADRID, Spain – Behind 17 points from senior Nick Stover (Los Angeles, Calif.), the University of South Alabama men's basketball team defeated the ISBL All-Stars 93-79 Thursday night to commence its European tour.

Stover was named the game's most valuable player and was one of four Jaguars in double digits. The ISBL All-Stars are a group of players from Eastern European countries.

"The guys did a great job and played extremely hard," USA head coach Matthew Graves said. "Everybody on the bench contributed and played. It was a physical game and both teams made some runs. Overall, I thought our intensity, especially on the defensive end, was outstanding for this type of exhibition game."

Senior Georgi Boyanov (Lovech, Bulgaria) contributed 16 points, senior Ken Williams (Houston, Texas) had 11, and senior Don MuepoKelly (Fontana, Calif.) added 10.

Freshman Josh Ajayi (El Monte, Calif.) grabbed 10 rebounds and MuepoKelly pulled down eight. Junior Dederick Lee (Clarksville, Ark.) dished out four assists.

After a tight first quarter, USA outscored its opponent by 11 in the second to take a 52-40 lead into the halftime break.

The all-stars dominated the third and closed to 65-61 at the end of the period thanks to a 21-13 advantage, but the Jaguars held them off, pulling away to finish off the contest.

The ISBL All-Stars shot 11 for 44 from behind the arc.

"They came out early and shot the ball extremely well from the 3-point line," Graves said. "We adjusted and did a much better job challenging shots, and adjusted to the physicality of the game overall."

The team arrived in Madrid Wednesday morning and has spent much of the time sightseeing, including a tour of Real Madrid's stadium.

"We spent the day touring the city of Madrid," Graves said. "We were able to see a lot of different sites on our walking and bus tour. The guys are really enjoying the culture and atmosphere and it's been a great trip so far."

Tomorrow is an off-day for the team. They will continue to explore the city before departing for Barcelona on Saturday. Game two of the three-game tour will be Monday.

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).

—USA—