Game Notes

Game 7 • South Alabama Jaguars (4-2) at Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (5-1)
November 30, 2013 • Noon • Murphy Center (11,520) • Murfreesboro, Tenn.

THE COACHES
South Alabama
Matthew Graves (Butler, 1998)
Record at USA: 4-2 (1st year)
Overall Record: 4-2 (1st year)
Record vs. Middle Tennessee: 0-0

Middle Tennessee
Kermit Davis (Mississippi State, 1982)
Record at MTSU: 213-140 (12th year)
Overall Record: 284-190 (16th year)

LAST GAME
South Alabama ran away with a 79-59 win Sunday over Houston Baptist. Middle Tennessee used a big first half run to pull away from Murray State 80-62 on Tuesday.

NEXT GAME
The Jaguars host city rival Spring Hill Monday night. The Blue Raiders will also be at home, taking on Belmont on Tuesday.

ON THE AIR
TV: CSS; Bernie Guenther (play-by-play), Scott Sanderson (color)
Radio: None
On the web: None

RANKINGS (through Nov. 27)
USA: #161 RPI (RealTimeRPI), #155 Sagarin
MTSU: #107 RPI (RealTimeRPI), #78 Sagarin

THE SERIES
Middle Tennessee leads 17-12.

Current winning streak: Middle Tennessee, 5 wins
USA's last win in series: 63-57 (1/2/11)
Last meeting: Middle Tennessee 85, South Alabama 50 (2/21/13)
USA's last win at the Murphy Center: 63-57 (2/19/09)
MT's last win at the Murphy Center: 85-50 (2/21/13)
USA's record at the Murphy Center: 5-6
USA's road streak: Lost 4
USA's longest winning / losing streak in series: 4 / 5

Notes: Middle Tennessee has won 10 of the last 12 meetings… MTSU has won five straight in the series, the longest vs. the Jags in school history… South Alabama is averaging 53.4 points in the losing streak… The Blue Raiders won three straight games by 16 points or more until their four-point win last season in Mobile, then won by 35 in Murfreesboro, the largest margin of victory by MTSU in the series… USA's last two wins have come by the same 63-57 score… The schools played just once from 1982-2001 before MTSU entered the Sun Belt… Middle Tennessee has eliminated South Alabama in four consecutive SBC Tournament meetings.

OPENING TIP
Saturday's game will take place in the Murphy Center, where the team has lost four straight by an average of 25.3 points, including last season's 85-50 defeat in February, and will be just the second road game of the season for the Jaguars. The Jags are averaging 53.4 points in their overall five-game skid to the Blue Raiders.

MTSU has the nation's longest regular-season home win streak at 32.

South Alabama has led each game this season at halftime by an average of 11.2 points. Sunday's 15-point lead vs. Houston Baptist is a new season high. USA is averaging 41.7 points in the first half while shooting 48.3 percent from the floor and 48.2 percent from 3-point land. Defensively, the Jags are holding the opposing team to just 30.5 points. Oddly, five of USA's six opponents have scored exactly 31 points at halftime—only William Carey (28) did not.

The second half has been a different story for South Alabama, who is being outscored by 3.0 points after the break. Sunday the Jaguars opened the second half on a 16-2 run to pull away from Houston Baptist, but went the final 9:17 without a field goal and shot 27.6 percent.

After starting 1-for-14 from 3-point land—including 14 straight misses—Ken Williams is shooting 55.6 percent from distance and has hit three or more triples three times in his last four games while averaging 11.3 points and shooting 57.7 percent from the floor in that stretch.

Antoine Allen is just 1-for-5 from long range in his last two games but he's still second in the Sun Belt Conference in 3-point percentage (.560) and sixth in 3-pointers per game (2.3). He made four 3-pointers in three of his first four outings this season.

The Jaguars as a team are the best 3-point shooting team in the conference, topping the league in 3-point percentage (.388) and 3-pointers per contest (9.0). It has been a team effort as nine different USA players have hit a triple and only two—Allen (6th) and Williams (T-8th)—rank in the league's top 15 in 3s per game. The Jags are 22nd in the nation in treys per outing.

Augustine Rubit, who went 3-for-5 from beyond the arc over his last two games, averaged 19.0 points and 10.3 rebounds with two double-doubles during the CBE Classic. He recorded 23 points and 12 rebounds vs. Wright State and 17 points and 13 boards vs. Houston Baptist. He needs one block for 100 in his career.

Rubit became South Alabama's all-time leading rebounder on Saturday, passing former All-American Terry Catledge, who had 932 in his career, and is currently 11 rebounds away from second in Sun Belt history and 58 from the top spot.

Ever since his 2-for-12 performance at the free-throw line vs. William Carey, Rubit is converting 81.8 percent (18-22) at the line.