Game 4 - vs. Indiana State Game Notes (.pdf)MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama women's basketball team host Indiana State Wednesday night before breaking for Thanksgiving. Tip-off is set for 7:05 p.m. versus the Sycamores at the Mitchell Center.
Live stats and web streaming of the contest versus Indiana State can be accessed at www.USAJaguars.com.
South Alabama (2-1) enters Wednesday's game after picking up its second win of the season with a 64-61 defeat of Alabama State on Sunday.
Jaguar head coach Terry Fowler has noted one constant quality about his club during the first three games of the year.
"The biggest thing that I've seen and we've talked to our team about this is that we haven't hung our heads when things have kind of turned on us and when teams have made runs at us to get back into games," the second-year head coach stated. "We've just kept plugging away. One of the mottos for this team is to embrace the grind. We're not going to blow people out. We're just going to have to keep our head down and keep grinding away."
Versus the Hornets, South Alabama did just that as they ASU come back from a double-digit second-half deficit, but made the plays down the stretch at both ends of the floor to pick up the three-point win.
Breanna Hall returned to the Jag lineup in the contest after missing the previous game with a foot injury and had a major impact on the outcome of the game. The senior guard led all scorers with 24 points. She was 9-of-17 from the field, including 4-for-8 from the three-point line, but probably her most important shots came in the closing seconds at the foul line. With 5.7 seconds remaining and the contest tied (61-61), Hall was fouled and calmly knocked down the bonus shots to give USA the lead for good.
The Mesquite, Texas, is averaging 20.0 points per game this season and is shooting 55.6 percent from the field in her two outings. She is also 5-for-10 from the arc and has hit all five of her free-throw attempts.
Simonne Potts also had a strong outing versus the Hornets as she registered her first career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds – both new career best for the junior forward. Potts is averaging 7.3 ppg and 6.3 rpg – second-most on the Jaguar on the year.
True freshman Chyna Ellis leads the club on the glass with 7.3 rebounds per game and sits just outside double figures offensively as she is averaging 9.0 points per outing.
Ellis is tied for sixth in the Sun Belt in rebounding, while Potts is tied for 12th.
JUCO transfer Amber Yelding has been strong off the bench for South Alabama as she leads the team with six steals. Yelding is third on the squad with 7.7 ppg.
Like the Jags, Indiana State (3-1) comes into the game fresh off a win. ISU captured a 76-69 victory over East Tennessee State on Monday night.
"Indiana State lost its best perimeter player for last year's club, but they are a physical team," Fowler said. "They have great length at all positions. They really pride themselves on going inside and pounding the ball inside. They are great on the boards. Indiana State is the defending Missouri Valley champions, so they know how to win. They've gone through a coaching change this season, but coach (Joe) Wells was an assistant/associate head coach this past season and they've just kept the train moving along the tracks. They are a great basketball team with a great basketball IQ. They play very hard, so we've got a big challenge ahead of us."
Racheal Mahan posted a new career-high with 25 points versus the Buccaneers. Mahan was 11-of-16 from the field and also led the Sycamores with seven rebounds in the win. The senior forward leads ISU in both scoring (13.0) and rebounding (7.5), while also knocking down 55.6 percent of her shot attempts.
Fellow senior Natasha Zurek recorded six steals versus ETSU. She leads the team in that category with 11 on the year. As a team, Indiana State is averaging 9.3 per contest.
Led by Mahan, ISU did most of its damage versus the Bucs in the pain as the Sycamores recorded 48 of their 76 points in the paint.
Indiana State has done an outstanding job of distributing the ball in '14'15. Coming into the game versus the Jags, ISU has dished out 15.3 assists per game. Travecia Franklin leads the club with 13 assists, while Zurek has 11.
Senior forward Chelsea Small is also averaging double digits with 10.0 points per outing. Small is shooting 40 percent from the field and has hit all nine of her opportunities at the charity stripe. Small is also second on the team in rebounds with 4.8 per game.
Jasmine Grier and Alexis Newbolt are averaging 7.8 and 7.3 points per game, respectively.
The game versus the Jaguars will be the first outside of the state of Indiana this season. Three of ISU's games have been at the Hullman Center, while the lone road contest was at Butler.
NOTES: The meeting between South Alabama and Indiana State will be the fourth meeting in the all-time series. The Sycamores lead the series 3-0. The last time the two clubs met was last year when they opened up the 2013-14 season. ISU won that game 53-40 in Terre Haute, Ind. This will be Indiana State's second trip to Mobile versus the Jaguars and first visit to the Mitchell Center. The last time the two teams faced each other in Mobile was back during the 1993-94 season where the Sycamores won 76-72. South Alabama holds a 2-5 all-time record versus current Missouri Valley Conference members. The last time USA faced a MVC member was the 2013-14 season (Indiana State).
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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