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MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama men's basketball team ended regulation with nine unanswered points and sophomore Shaq Calhoun (Rome, Ga.) hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 21.7 seconds left in overtime to defeat Texas-Arlington 88-85 Saturday afternoon in the Mitchell Center.

The Jaguars improve to 7-10 overall and 2-4 in the Sun Belt Conference. The Mavericks have their eight-game win streak snapped and fall to 13-3 and 4-1.

South Alabama held UT Arlington to 1 for 16 shooting to end the game and overcame a nine-point deficit to win its fifth straight at home in the series.

"I'm really proud and thankful, and our guys responded very well tonight," USA head coach Matthew Graves said. "We didn't practice yesterday. Instead, we sat in the locker room, met, and talked for almost 2 ½ hours. We aired out some good, bad, ugly and our guys really responded. I think we had some issues with accountability, both from the coaches and players, and it was a wonderful thing to see.

"In this game we got a big run, they came back, we made a big run, then we came back and went ahead. In every single scenario we had an opportunity to fold, to show bad body language and to fight amongst ourselves, but we hung together. When you win like this you really validate your culture and what you're trying to accomplish."

Junior Georgi Boyanov (Lovech, Bulgaria) set a new career high with 24 points and recorded his fifth double-double of the year with 11 rebounds. He went 13 for 14 at the free-throw line and tied his personal best with three steals.

"I think one thing with Georgi, is he's been our most consistent scorer all year and obviously 24 points is a huge game for him," Graves said. "Again, you look at eight to 10 shots and he shoots them really well. The key for Georgi tonight was he was strong with the basketball, he was physical, and he allowed himself to get fouled. When a guy like that gets comfortable with the free-throw line and you keep seeing the ball consistently going in, it gives you a lot of confidence."

Junior Ken Williams (Houston, Texas) scored 14 of his 23 points in the first half and tied his career high with six 3-pointers.

"I'm really happy for Ken," Graves said. "Obviously, he's our all-league guy and we need him to play well and be a big part of our success. He has been struggling and it was great to see him in a rhythm, be comfortable and make some shots."

Outside of two brief stretches in the early in the contest, the Jags never trailed and led by as many as 12 late in the first half.

USA kept its lead until midway through the second half when UTA exploded for 11 consecutive points to go ahead 61-58 with 11:43 to play, and stretched its advantage to 66-60 less than a minute later to culminate a 16-2 run.

The lead grew to nine four different times, including with 3:22 to play before the Jaguars rallied. South Alabama went 2 for 2 from the floor and 4 for 6 at the charity stripe in the final 3:05, with Boyanov and Williams combining for eight of the nine points, including a pair of free throws with 21.6 seconds left to tie the game at 78-78.

"I think during that run, they were taking some contested shots," Graves noted. "We were active in our zone and able to rebound out of it. That was one of the biggest differences between tonight and Thursday night. We got crushed on the glass Thursday night and that's something non-negotiable. We've got to be able to defend, and be able to rebound the basketball. If we do those two things on a consistent basis then we're going to give ourselves a chance to win. Offensively, we may sputter here or there, but if we defend and we rebound then we're always going to be in the game."

In overtime, a Williams layup and two free throws from Boyanov gave the Jaguars 85-82 lead with 44.2 seconds left, but Erick Neal hit a quick, deep '3' six seconds later for an 85-85 tie.

On USA's next possession, Williams dished to Calhoun on the right wing who drilled it for his third triple and 12th point of the night.

"It was a very mature play by (Ken)," Graves stated. "In the past, he would have forced that off the ball screen and maybe thrown up a floater, tried to shoot a contested shot. He had the maturity to come down off the ball screen, he didn't have the play, he pitched it to Shaq and Shaq stepped up and made a huge shot. If you're in practice you see that play all the time and they make the pitch. (Ken), as a junior, put in that position, showed the maturity and he made an outstanding play."

Texas-Arlington had three chances from distance in the final seven seconds but was unable to convert. It finished the contest shooting 35.5 percent from the floor and made just one of its eight attempts in the extra frame.

"One of the things we did is we tried to mix up our defenses a little bit better than we did the other night," Graves said. "We're still evolving with the zone. To be real candid, that's way out of my comfort zone. Over the past month, we've been trying to send different zone looks and look at different coverages. Our guys have done a great job staying the course with it."

Junior Nick Stover (Los Angeles, Calif.) had 15 points for the Jaguars, and Calhoun set a new career high with six rebounds in addition to the 12 points.

Kevin Hervey paced the Mavericks with 24 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks. Neal came off the bench to score 17 points with six assists and four steals.

South Alabama hits the road next week, starting Thursday at Louisiana-Lafayette.

NOTES: The home team has won all five meetings in the series since Texas-Arlington joined the Sun Belt prior to the 2013-14 season… USA shot 44.7 percent (11-25) from 3-point land after combining to convert 20.8 percent (10-48) in its previous three outings… The Jags are 7-1 when outshooting their opponent… USA is 3-10 this season when trailing or tied with a minute left in regulation after losing its first 46 games in those circumstances under Graves… South Alabama has won its last two overtime contests after dropping six in a row under Graves… Williams is averaging 23.3 points in his last three games vs. UT Arlington… Boyanov's 24 points are the most by a Jaguar this season and he has five double-doubles in his last eight games… He is averaging 13.4 points and 9.1 rebounds since rejoining the starting lineup Dec. 14… USA has rallied from deficits of nine or more to win three times this season… The Jaguars' 43 points before halftime are the second-most scored by the team this year… The nine-point lead at halftime tied USA's biggest against a Division I opponent in 2015-16… After entering the game with the worst free-throw percentage in the conference, the Jaguars shot a season-best 78.1 percent (25-32), including 85.2 percent in regulation… Williams tied his career high in both 3-pointers made (6) and attempted (11), and moved into third place on USA's career 3-point attempt list with 497, passing Chris Young (2002-04)… South Alabama had a pair of 20-point scorers in the same game for the first time since Jan. 8, 2011.

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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