Box Score - South Alabama 48, Georiga Southern 45 (.pdf)Post Game QuotesPhoto GalleryMOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama women's basketball team trailed by seven midway through the fourth quarter, but used a 10-0 run to rally back and pick up its fourth-straight home win Saturday afternoon as the Jaguars defeated Georgia Southern, 48-45 at the Mitchell Center in the program's annual "Pink Game".
"It was really good to come out with the win, even when we didn't play well," South Alabama head coach Terry Fowler said. "I continue to tell the team, that good teams win even when they don't play well. I was proud of the fact that we were able to do that. It was disappointing how we came out. I felt like we didn't have the energy, and we only focused on the scout. Yet when it came time that we had to have stops, and we had to pick up our energy, our young ladies answered the challenge. Those are signs of a team that grows up. It's easy to stay in that state of mind and fold, but we battled, fought and took a lot of pride in winning at home."
The four-game home win streak is the first for the program since the 2012-13 season. It is also the first four-game home conference win streak since the 2011-12 campaign.
The Jaguars (11-12, 7-7 SBC) will close out its three-game homestand against in-state conference foe Troy. Tip-off versus the Trojans is set for 5 p.m. at the Mitchell Center. Live stats and web streaming for the contest versus the Trojans can be accessed at www.USAJaguars.com. Fans can also keep up with in-game updates by following action on the program's twitter account @SouthALWBB.
With the win, South Alabama has now won five of its last seven games and are tied with Troy for fifth in the league standings.
Marquita Daniels continued her strong play of late with a team-high 16 points on 4-of-9 shooting. Daniels also had six free throws and four steals in 32 minutes of action. The 5-7 guard has recorded double figures in six of her last seven games and over the last two she has also added 10 steals.
"Ever since [Marquita Daniels] has come back and started to play well, it has generated on the offensive end," Fowler stated. "She's gotten more steals and been more active on that end of the floor. We're seeing the results transferring over with the steals, and we're pushing a little bit more on rebounds as well."
Colby Davis just missed double digits, finishing with nine points, while Juliann Miller chipped in with eight and Taylor Jenkins added seven. Chyna Ellis led the club on the glass with a game-high eight rebounds, while also registering three blocks.
With her three blocks, Ellis moved past former Jag LaSandra Jenkins (62 – 1983-84) and into a tie for second with Genevieve Delk (65 – 2003-04) for second on South Alabama's single-season blocks chart. The 6-2 sophomore center has now had two or more blocks in 20 of her 23 games this season, including each of the last 16.
The loss for Georgia Southern (7-16, 4-10 SBC) was the Eagles' fifth in their last six outings. Patrice Butler led the club with 13 points, but the junior post player was held to just two points and just three shot attempts in the second half.
Angel McGowan and Alexis Sams also ended the contest in double figures with 10 points apiece. McGowan was just 4-of-15 from the field, including 1-of-8 from the three-point line by the Jag defense. McGowan had 26 points and five three-pointers in the first meeting between the two clubs earlier this season in Statesboro. She also had six of the Eagles' 20 turnovers.
After the Jaguars opened up the game with a bucket, Georgia Southern scored on five of its first six possessions and took a 10-6 lead following a jumper by McGowan with just over six minutes into the contest. McGowan and P. Butler combined to record eight of the Eagles' first 10 points.
South Alabama fought its way back and claimed its first lead of the afternoon at 11-10 when Ellis grabbed a missed free throw and laid the ball back off the glass.
P. Butler didn't let the lead last long as she came back with four quick points for GSU and put the visitors back out in front (14-11) with back-to-back buckets. Butler had eight of the Eagles points in the quarter as she hit four of her first six shots.
USA trimmed the deficit to one (14-13) at the end of the quarter as Miller knocked down a pair of free throws with 36.5 showing on the clock. Free-throw shooting kept the Jaguars in it in the first as they were 7-for-8 at the line and just 3-for-10 from the field.
In the second quarter, Georgia Southern used the three-point shot to extend their lead out to double during the first six-plus minutes of the period. Sams and Sierra Butler each knocked down a pair and then P. Butler connected from the left wing at the 4:49 mark to put GSU up 29-21. Coming out of the under five media time out, S. Butler sank a pair of free throws to extend the Eagle advantage out to 31-21.
Jenkins' jumper with three minutes, 55 seconds remaining before the half would cut the deficit to 31-23 and be the final points for either team in the first half.
Three-point shooting was the key stat during the first 20 minutes of action as the Eagles had five treys, and USA was held to 0-of-5 shooting from outside the arc.
Georgia Southern was also 12-of-26 from the field for 46.2 percent, while South Alabama was 8-of-24 for 33.3 percent. P. Butler led all scorers with 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting.
Coming out of the intermission, South Alabama quickly got itself back into the game as the Jags scored the first seven points of the third. Ellis recorded a pair of buckets to ignite the scoring and with seven minutes, 12 seconds showing on the clock, Daniels drained USA's first three of the afternoon from the left wing to trim the deficit to one (31-30).
On Georgia Southern's ensuing possession, P. Butler ended a string of nine-straight missed shots by the Eagles and was their first points since midway through the second quarter.
With just under six minutes remaining in the third, Daniels hit one of her two attempts at the charity stripe to cut the deficit to two, but those would be the final points of the period for the Jaguars. Over the last five minutes, 55 seconds of the frame, USA was 0-for-7 from the field with three turnovers.
Briana Jones ended a nearly four-minute offensive drought for both teams with a jumper with less than two to go in the third. On the Eagles next trip down the floor, Sams drove the middle of the lane for a layup to put GSU up 37-31.
In the fourth, South Alabama held GSU scoreless for the first two-plus minutes of the quarter and cut the Eagle lead to 37-35 after a three by Daniels and Jenkins' one of two showing at the charity stripe.
Georgia Southern though would regain control over the next two minutes and extend its lead back out to seven (44-37) on a trey by McGowan from the right corner at the 6:01 mark of the fourth.
Following McGowan's bucket, the Jaguar defense would stiffen, holding GSU scoreless over the next five minutes and to just one point for the remainder of the game. Over the final six minutes of the game, USA's defense held the Eagles to 0-for-7 shooting and forced three turnovers.
The Jaguars would take advantage of their defense and over a four-and-a-half minute stretch, South Alabama would reclaim the lead for good and rattle off a 10-0 run. Jenkins began the scoring for the Jags with a jumper inside the paint at the 5:37 mark. After a pair of free throws by Daniels, Miller found Davis open in the right corner for a three to tie the game up at 44-44 with three minutes, 45 seconds remaining in regulation.
A minute later, Daniels put the Jaguars up one as she hit one of two at the line, then with just over two minutes showing on the clock, Jenkins knocked down another jumper when Daniels found the senior open just inside the foul line, extending USA's lead to 47-44.
After a McGowan free throw with less than a minute to go – GSU's first points in five minutes – Daniels was fouled and looked to make it a two possession game. The sophomore guard though hit just one of two at the line with 31.3 showing on the clock, giving the Eagles one final chance to tie.
GSU would have two opportunities in the closing seconds, but the Jags never allowed an open look. Ellis blocked the first three-pointer by the Eagles and then Sams missed another. Georgia Southern came up with the offensive rebound, but didn't get another look as Jenkins stole the ball from S. Butler before she could get a shot off in the right corner.
After shooting well during the first 20 minutes, Georgia Southern struggled to find its offensive touch over the final two quarters, scoring just 14 points and hitting just five of its 25 shot attempts in the second half for 20 percent. The Eagles were also just 1-of-12 from the three-point line after halftime.
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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