Game Notes

Game 12 • South Alabama Jaguars (6-5) vs. Arkansas Razorbacks (8-2)
December 21, 2013 • 7 p.m. • Verizon Arena (18,000) • North Little Rock, Ark.

THE COACHES
South Alabama
Matthew Graves (Butler, 1998)
Record at USA: 6-5 (1st year)
Overall Record: 6-5 (1st year)
Record vs. Arkansas: 0-0

Arkansas
Mike Anderson (Tulsa, 1982)
Record at Arkansas: 45-29 (3rd year)
Overall Record: 245-127 (11th year)

LAST GAME
South Alabama held off Dillard 82-73. Arkansas ran past Tennessee-Martin 102-56.

NEXT GAME
The Jaguars return after Christmas to travel to New Mexico State on Saturday. The Razorbacks are also in action Saturday, hosting High Point.

ON THE AIR
Radio: 105.5 WNSP, Lee Shirvanian (pxp)
On the web: www.wnsp.com (audio); ESPN3 (video), Scott Inman and Blake Eddins

RANKINGS (through Dec. 18)
USA: #186 RPI (RealTimeRPI), #145 Sagarin
Arkansas: #44 RPI (RealTimeRPI), #26 Sagarin

THE SERIES
Arkansas leads 5-1.

Current streak: South Alabama, 1 win
Last meeting: South Alabama 74, Arkansas 61 (11/29/09)
USA's last win in Arkansas: None
Arkansas's last win in Arkansas: 101-91 (12/11/90)
USA's longest winning / losing streak in series: 1 / 5

Notes: The two schools met four times over a three-year period from 1988-92 then played a home-and-home in 2008 and 2009… Arkansas' 79-77 win in 2008-09 for the Coors Classic in Mobile was the first time the Razorbacks failed to score 100 points against South Alabama… Arkansas averaged 102.5 points in its first four wins… The Jaguars earned their first victory in the series on Nov. 29, 2009… Arkansas was ranked second in the nation in the Dec. 11, 1990 meeting.

OPENING TIP
South Alabama is 0-4 on the road or at neutral sites and 6-1 at home this season.

One game after holding Gonzaga, the nation's sixth-highest scoring team, to 21.4 points under their season average, the Jaguars gave up their second-most points in regulation and a season-high 51.9 shooting percentage to Dillard. The Bleu Devils shot 55.6 percent in the second half alone while Tyrone Williams scored 35 points on 15 of 19 shooting. Williams' total is the most by a USA opponent since 2005 and second-most in Mitchell Center history. Arkansas brings a potent offense into the game, ranking 20th in the nation with 86.8 points per contest, and will go against the second-ranked team in the Sun Belt both scoring defense (66.6 ppg) and field goal percentage defense (.406).

The Jags came into the Dillard game Tuesday leading the conference in both 3-pointers per game (10th in the nation) and 3-point percentage (48th), but suffered season lows in both categories, making just four in 19 attempts (.211), while going 0-for-9 in the second half. In the previous two games, South Alabama converted 44.4 percent from distance and made 12 triples per game, including a school-record 17 at Rice.

USA has committed 10 or fewer turnovers four times in its last six games, including seven vs. Dillard which tied the team's season low. The Jags, who rank third in the Sun Belt with just 12.8 turnovers per game, will be facing a Razorbacks team that forces 17.5 miscues per outing, tops in the SEC, and has a plus-5.2 turnover margin which ranks seventh in Division I.

Barrington Stevens III had just one assist in the win over Dillard, but did not commit a turnover for the third time in his last four games. He has put up a positive assist-turnover in nine of 11 games this season. He has the fewest turnovers of any USA player averaging 20 minutes per game or more.

Augustine Rubit's first rebound Saturday will make him the second player in Sun Belt Conference history to grab 1,000 in a career. He needs 12 Saturday to overtake Muntrelle Dobbins of Arkansas-Little Rock as the conference's all-time leader.

Rubit put up his second 20-10 game of the season vs. Dillard with 21 points and 11 rebounds. He did it despite shooting an uncharacteristic 3-for-10 from the free throw line, the second time he's shot under 30 percent at the stripe (2-for-12 vs. William Carey). Outside of those two games, Rubit, who was fourth in the league last season at 79.5 percent, is converting at an 83.6 percent clip. He had made 22 of his previous attempts at the line prior to Tuesday.

Rubit moved into a tie for fifth in school history with his 82nd career double-digit scoring game.

Mychal Ammons continued his up and down season Tuesday, putting up 17 points on 4 of 5 shooting while dishing out three assists and blocking two shots. He scored three points vs. Gonzaga after scoring 17 and 16 points the two games before that. He has scored 16 or more in a game this season four times and five or less four times.