Game Notes

MOBILE, Ala. – After a huge win at LSU before Thanksgiving, the University of South Alabama men’s basketball team opens a four-game homestand Wednesday night against in-state rival UAB.

Wednesday’s tilt starts at 7:05 p.m. in the Mitchell Center.

“Winning your home games are a must,” said USA head coach Ronnie Arrow. “Other than the Florida State game, I think we have shown that we have gotten better every game and are learning from different situations. Now we’ll have to see if we can stand prosperity. Do we not learn from our win and revert back or do we use it as a major stepping stone?”

The Jaguars (2-2) rebounded from a big loss at nationally-ranked Florida State three days prior to knock off their third SEC opponent—all on the road—in the last three years. They did it behind a season-high 20 points from sophomore Augustine Rubit (Houston, Texas), a career-best 19 from junior Xavier Roberson (Houston, Texas), and a game-tying shot at the buzzer from junior Freddie Goldstein (Milwaukee, Wis.).

Roberson’s efforts earned him the Sun Belt Player of the Week honor Tuesday.

“Winning is always the No. 1 priority, but when you have a game like we had against FSU and come back a few days later and win on the road against an SEC school, it showed a lot of character on our team’s part,” said Arrow. “That game was very similar to other games that we’ve had where we didn’t stop the bleeding, but that night, we did. In other games, we didn’t run our offense and weren’t scoring, and to compound that, we stopped guarding. The other night, when it got late in the game, we did both.”

The Jags will attempt to stop two recent six-game slides. South Alabama has dropped six in a row to UAB and to Conference USA opponents. The team’s last win over UAB came in 1996 and the Jaguars last defeated a CUSA school in the 2008-09 season (Southern Miss).

“A lot of these guys now had nothing to do with those games,” Arrow noted. “It’s the next game on the calendar and it doesn’t matter who it is. Regardless of what conference they play in, it’s about us showing up and maturing each practice and game. We have experienced players now and hopefully they’ll show what it takes to win.”

UAB enter Wednesday’s contest with a 1-4 record and are coming off a 59-54 home loss to UT Martin.

The Blazers rely on their big men, Cameron Moore and Ovie Soko, for a bulk of their offensive production. The pair both average double-digit points and combine for 25.4 of the team’s 57.2 point average. Moore and Soko scored 17 and 19 points, respectively, in last season’s matchup against South Alabama and each grabbed eight rebounds.

“The way we play should be a post man’s nightmare because we front the post,” said Arrow. “The post shouldn’t even get the ball. I know Cameron can go out and hit shots from the outside but inside, the way we play, he shouldn’t get the ball.”

Moore averages a double-double on the year with 15.4 points and 11.6 rebounds, and tallied 15 points, nine rebounds and five blocks Sunday in the loss to UT Martin. Moore leads the nation in blocks per game (5.2) and rejected seven shots in each of the first two games of the season.

“He brings the ability to play inside and outside, he can shoot and can bring it in the post,” Arrow commented. “We have to keep him from getting the ball, and if he does get it outside, get up on him and not give him room to shoot. When we drive, we have to know that he’s around and lurking—you can’t just go in and challenge 6-(foot) 10 active guys.”

While Moore and Soko do the work on the inside, Jordan Swing, K.C. Whitaker and Preston Purifoy take care of the outside. The trio has combined for 57 of the team’s 82 3-point attempts, with Swing—formerly of Western Kentucky—and Purifoy leading the team with six 3s apiece.

“Moore and Soko are their two best players, but they have Swing and Whitaker, who will take a bunch of 3-point shots. We can’t allow them to hit a couple and get in a comfort zone. They’re going to shoot them and we have to be right up on them, so if they do catch it, they don’t have a shot.”

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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