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MOBILE, Ala. – Western Kentucky's Chris Harrison-Docks hit a floater in the lane with 4.3 seconds left to give the Hilltoppers a 58-56 win over the University of South Alabama men's basketball team Thursday evening at the Mitchell Center.

The game was the Sun Belt Conference opener for both teams. WKU improves to 9-5 overall while USA drops to 6-8.

"I thought our guys really competed—we had struggled the last couple of games—and tonight I thought we played some really good basketball for stretches and the first half we were patient, we got really good looks," Jaguar head coach Matthew Graves said. "The second half we started off really well and then they switched to the little press and I think our young guards got a little shell-shocked early. They recovered from it but unfortunately when you're playing a team as good as Western Kentucky, being the defending champs, those two or three minute lapses is all they need to come out on top.

"They made a great play there at the end with the shot, but I think as we look through several possessions and prior to that in the first half, we just let too many get away from us."

The Hilltoppers made five of their last six shots from the floor, including their last three to match the Jaguars shot for shot.

WKU called timeout with 29.2 seconds left to set up their last attempt. Harrison-Docks drove the lane from the left wing and put up a contested shot that hit nothing but net.

"I would give up that shot every day," Graves said. "The kid hit a 12-foot runner and those are shots you're going to have to live with. We're going to have to look at film and there's several plays throughout the game that we would like to have back."

T.J. Price single-handedly gave Western Kentucky the lead with 4 ½ minutes to play and Harrison-Docks took the reins in the final 1:19. Price accounted for eight consecutive points to rally the 'Toppers from a four-point deficit and when he was done, WKU held a 51-49 advantage.

With 3:10 left, junior Mychal Ammons (Vicksburg, Miss.) hit a layup to tie the score but the Hilltoppers' Payton Hulsey answered on their next possession to regain the lead. After a pair of turnovers, senior Antoine Allen (Baltimore, Md.) nailed a '3' to put the Jags up 54-53 with 1:54 on the clock.

From there Harrison-Docks took over. He answered Allen's triple with one of his own to go ahead 56-54, and after Ammons knotted the score at 56-56 with a layup, hit the game-winner.

"We knew Rubit was guarding Caden (Dickerson) and had him on the opposite corner," WKU head coach Ray Harper said. "We were going to get George (Fant) into a flat ball screen with Chris, and he was going to drive it. If there was any help, we felt like Caden would get a great look out of the corner for us.  So it was pretty good execution and a good road win for us tonight."

South Alabama sprinted out of the gates to start the second half, scoring the opening 10 points after halftime, getting the first five from senior Augustine Rubit (Houston, Texas) and the last five from Ammons.

"It wasn't really any adjustments because we were getting the shots that we wanted," Graves said. "I think we were more aggressive about taking those shots and being assertive. That's the whole key with this team. If we don't have an attacking mindset and attacking mentality, we kind of play 50/50 basketball. And when guys turn it up a notch and play really hard and really in tune, we can be a championship-level team in this league and we need to just show that for more consistent minutes as we play."

The Jags were up eight three separate times in the early moments of the final period before the Hilltoppers turned up the pressure and forced turnovers that led to an 8-0 run and a tie game. After a layup by Aaron Adeoye, back-to-back USA miscues were turned into six points on two triples, and the largest lead for either team after that point was four.

"I think it put us on our heels for two or three minutes and unfortunately when you play a good team like Western Kentucky that's all they need to get within striking distance and then ultimately win and that's why if you want to compete at a high level, you have to compete for the full 40 minutes," Graves noted.

Ammons posted a team-high 15 points and three assists, while Rubit and Allen added 10 apiece. Rubit grabbed nine rebounds.

For Western Kentucky, Price led all scorers with 19. Harrison-Docks came off the bench for 11 points and four assists, and George Fant recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 boards.

South Alabama hosts Georgia State Saturday afternoon at 4:05 p.m.

NOTES: WKU's 58 points are the fewest by the winning team in the series since a 50-48 Hilltopper victory on Feb. 20, 1999… The loss is South Alabama's second at home this season (6-2)… Western Kentucky won the rebounding battle 40-36 and outrebounded South Alabama 25-15 in the first half, grabbing 11 offensive rebounds to the Jags' 11 defensive boards; those 11 offensive rebounds led to nine points… The Hilltoppers have won three straight against the Jags and trail overall 33-32; the Jaguars are the only Sun Belt school to lead the series with WKU… South Alabama, the 16th-best 3-point defense in the nation coming into the contest, held Western Kentucky to 2-for-18 from beyond the arc in the first 32 minutes but allowed WKU to finish 5-for-6 in the last eight minutes, and 7-for-24 (29.2%) in the game… The Jags' six blocks—by six different players—are the most by the team since rejecting seven on Nov. 24… USA has lost three straight games for the first time since last November… The Jags lost for the first time this season when holding an opponent to less than 60 points (4-1)… South Alabama's six free throws and nine attempts are both season lows, as are Western Kentucky's three makes in eight attempts… Price is averaging 21.0 points in his last three games against South Alabama.

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).

—USA—