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LAS VEGAS – Down six midway through the second half, the University of South Alabama men’s basketball team outscored San Diego 21-9 to end the contest to prevail 68-62 Thursday afternoon in the Las Vegas Holiday Hoops Classic at South Point Casino.

The Jaguars win their fourth straight game, and seventh in their last eight outings, and go to 8-3 on the year. San Diego has lost six of seven and drops to 5-7.

“I think our guys finally got some energy about them,” said USA head coach Ronnie Arrow. “Aug (Rubit) got some key rebounds late in the game, we took care of the ball, started getting the ball inside, started scoring and other than a couple of misses, we made our free throws.”

Sophomore Augustine Rubit (Houston, Texas) recorded his fifth double-double of the year with 15 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, including a key putback late in the contest to put the game away.

“Aug is sneaky,” said Arrow. “You think he might not have a great game but he has a double-double. I thought he played in spurts and he still had a double-double.”

The Jaguars, who fell behind in the first half, began their rally trailing 53-47 with 8:20 left in the contest. Junior Freddie Goldstein (Milwaukee, Wis.) hit a 3-pointer, and after a USD turnover, junior Javier Carter (Dallas, Texas) hit a jumper to close the gap to 53-52.

San Diego responded with a layup, but South Alabama scored the next five points to take the lead for the first time since the 11:07 mark of the first half. Rubit made a layup and the Jags got three free throws from freshman Mychal Ammons (Vicksburg, Miss.) and Goldstein.

The Toreros’ Darian Norris converted from behind the arc to retake the lead (58-57), but the Jags started a game-ending 11-4 spurt at the 4:06 mark with a free throw from Rubit. Ammons hit a triple on the next trip down the floor to go ahead for the final time.

After Chris Manresa trimmed the USA advantage with 2:19 to play, junior Trey Anderson (Carrollton, Texas) converted an old-fashioned three-point play for a four-point bulge.

Up two with the ball in the final minute, the Jags missed a shot with the shot clock winding down, but Rubit came through with a huge offensive rebound and bucket with 15.7 seconds left for an insurmountable 66-62 advantage.

“That’s what he should be doing,” said Arrow. “Last year he averaged (4.5) offensive rebounds and he needs to keep doing that.”

The Toreros missed a 3-point attempt on their next possession and Rubit finished them off with two free throws.

Ammons and Goldstein shared team-high honors with 17 points each. Ammons did his work off the bench, shooting 7-for-10 from the floor and 2-for-3 from 3-point land.

“Mychal is just getting better and better out there and that’s what we need for him to be doing,” stated Arrow.

Goldstein hit five 3-pointers, the most by a USA player this season, on 10 attempts. The Jags as a team went 8-for-18 from behind the arc.

South Alabama jumped out to a 10-2 lead in the early going before a prolonged shooting slump allowed San Diego to take control. USD outscored USA 25-10 over a 10-minute period as the Jags went 10:06 without a field goal.

Despite the slump, the Jaguars shot 45.8 percent from the floor in the first half, but committed 15 turnovers.

Manresa led all scorers with 18 points off the bench and Norris added 17. Christopher Anderson dished out nine assists and had four steals.

South Alabama takes some time off before opening Sun Belt Conference play Dec. 31 at Middle Tennessee. The game, which can be seen on the Sun Belt Network and ESPN3.com, will tip off at 2:30 p.m.

NOTES: The Jags outrebounded the Toreros 44-24, which is the third largest rebounding margin for USA this season, and the eighth straight game the Jags have won the battle of the boards (7-1 record)… South Alabama is 5-0 when Rubit has a double-double, and 7-0 when any player has one… Carter had two blocks to extend his run of eight consecutive games with a rejection… Goldstein’s five treys are the most by an individual this year and the team’s eight treys are a team season high… Goldstein has a 3-pointer in 10 of the team’s 11 games and a total of 10 in the last three contests... South Alabama last won seven games in an eight-game stretch at the end of the 2008-09 season… The Jags also started the 2009-10 year 8-3.

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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