Official Game Statistics
MOBILE, Ala. ? Facing its first halftime deficit in eight games, South Alabama shot 57. 9 percent in the second half Thursday night to erase a 13-point deficit late in the opening period and earn a 66-60 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette at the Mitchell Center. The win was the 12th straight for the Jaguars, the fifth-longest active streak in the country.
South Alabama (16-3, 8-0) was led by seniors Demetric Bennett and Daon Merritt, who tallied 16 points each, but it was junior DeAndre Coleman who provided the spark. He posted his fifth double-double of the season with a career-high 15 points and 12 rebounds. Chris Gradnigo was the only player in double figures for Louisiana-Lafayette (8-11, 4-4) as he scored a game-high 19 points.
After seeing the Jaguars bolt to an early 12-5 lead, the Ragin’ Cajuns used a 9-2 run to take their first lead, 16-14 at the eight-minute mark of the first half. With an 18-17 advantage less than a minute later, ULL went on a 16-4 run that included seven straight points to open its biggest margin, 13 at 34-21, with 2:50 left in the period. South closed on a spurt, but faced its first deficit at intermission since the Troy game on Dec. 20, 34-27.
ULL, which made just two of its first 10 shots, finished the half at 46.9 percent, while the Jaguars hit just 42.9 percent. The home team also uncharacteristically committed 10 turnovers in the period, while forcing only three from the Ragin’ Cajuns.
The Ragin' Cajuns scored the first four points of the second half, but South began to rally. Seven straight points closed an eight-point deficit, 41-33, to one, 41-40 with 13:29 left, then four straight points evened the game at 44 with 11:38 to play. ULL tallied the next four points, but the Jaguars took their first lead since the nine-minute mark of the first half when Merritt penetrated the lane and hit a scoop-shot to make the score 50-48 with 7:43 remaining.
ULL responded immediately with a three-pointer by Randell Daigle to go ahead 51-50, but Merritt duplicated his feat on the next possession for a 52-51 USA lead.
From there, the Jaguars scored the next three points, all at the line, to start an 8-2 run that gave them a seven-point advantage, 60-53 with 3:55 to play. The Cajuns took advantage of some poor free throw shooting to close to within four in the final 1:25, but were unable to get closer. The Jaguars made just four of eight free throws during a two-minute span before Merritt knocked down a pair with 16 seconds left to put USA up by its biggest margin, nine points at 66-57.
"I think this shows the character of this team," Head Coach Ronnie Arrow said. "We didn't play well -- they had something to do with that -- but we also didn't execute. In the second half, we ran our offense and got defensive stops. I thought our seniors -- Demetric and Daon -- really led this team tonight. They did as many positives to lead our team as I can remember all season.
South Alabama's winning streak stands behind only Kansas (18), Memphis (17), Drake (16) and Indiana (13) for longest in the nation. The 11-0 record at the Mitchell Center also puts the Jaguars in the top 20 for longest current home-court streaks.
The Jaguars held a 34-18 advantage on the boards during the contest and committed only four second-half turnovers. They finished the game shooting 50 percent (20 of 40), while holding the Ragin' Cajuns to 45.1 percent.
South Alabama wraps up its brief homestand Sunday afternoon at 3:05 p.m. against Denver.
