MOBILE, Ala. – Stetson shot 66.7 percent from the floor and hit nine 3-pointers after halftime for an 81-77 comeback victory over the University of South Alabama men's basketball team Wednesday night at the Mitchell Center.

USA junior Rodrick Sikes, who scored a game-high 32 points, helped rally the Jaguars (3-3) from a four-point deficit in the final 23 seconds by hitting a game-tying triple with 2.6 seconds left in regulation.

The Hatters (4-2) hit a 3-pointer on their first two trips down the floor in overtime – the second after an offensive rebound – and made it a six-point contest after a free throw. SU led by no fewer than four points the rest of the way.

Sophomore Josh Ajayi recorded his second double-double of the year with a season-best 20 points and 11 rebounds.

GAME FACTS
- South Alabama fell behind 7-0 in the early going and didn't score until the 13:36 mark, but used a 17-2 run to take a 20-11 lead late in the first half
- The Jaguars led by five – the largest lead for either team in the second half – with 11:03 to play before the Hatters scored 11 unanswered points, shooting 6 for 7 from the floor, to take a 57-51 advantage
- USA scored nine of the next 11 to retake the lead, but back-to-back triples from SU's B.J. Glasford forced the Jags to rally again, this time from a 65-60 deficit
- Senior Dederick Lee (2 points) and Ajayi (4) combined on six consecutive points to go up 66-65, but Stetson's Angel Rivera hit a layup and then a 3-pointer with 30.7 seconds left in regulation for a 70-66 advantage
- Ajayi went 1 for 2 at the line at the 22.9 mark, and following a Stetson turnover, 3-point attempts from Sikes and Andrews were no good before Sikes finally hit the game-tying shot with 2.6 remaining to knot the game at 70-70
- The Jaguars never led in the extra frame, as the Hatters started with a 7-1 run and never looked back
- Stetson had five players in double-digit scoring, led by Abayomi Iyiola's 16 points off the bench, and Glasford's 15; Larry Dennis grabbed 10 rebounds before fouling out

NOTES
- In its previous two games plus the first half tonight, South Alabama held the opposition to 30.9 percent shooting from the floor and 17.4 percent from 3-point land; in the second half and overtime, Stetson shot 66.7 percent overall and 60.0 percent from distance
- The Jaguars' 14-0 run tied the team's biggest unanswered scoring spurt of the season
- Sikes had 15 of the team's 31 first-half points
- Sikes is the first Jaguar to score 30 points in a game since Augustine Rubit scored 35 vs. Gonzaga on Dec. 14, 2013
- Ajayi and Sikes are the first USA teammates to score 20 points in a game since Dec. 16, 2016
- Ajayi's double-double is the fifth of his career, and he tied his career high with four assists
- South Alabama has lost three of its last four overtime contests
- Sophomore Jordan Andrews had his double-digit scoring streak snapped at five, but Sikes has now scored 10 or more in five straight
- Sikes' seven triples are tied for eighth in school history
- Lee set a new season high with five assists and had just one turnover
- Senior Nick Davis blocked three shots and added two steals
- Sophomore Trhae Mitchell set a new career high with eight rebounds, all on the defensive end

THEY SAID IT
Head Coach Matthew Graves
Opening statement: "Obviously we're really disappointed in our effort for most of the game. It starts with me, I have to do a better job of getting guys ready to play. We did not start the game with a sense of urgency, which was extremely frustrating. We had some moments early where our defense kept us in the game — they were 0-for-10 from 3 in the first half — but we knew they were going to eventually break out and make 3s; that's what they do as a team, they play four guards and really spread the floor so it doesn't surprise me the amount of 3s that they made in the second half and overtime. We made a good play at the end, we got on the floor and got the ball to Rodrick to send it into overtime. But our lack of consistency throughout the entire game is extremely bothersome to me."

On the second half and overtime: "As excited as we were with two wins in the Northeast, I don't want that to be the highlight of the season by any stretch. We came back and our lack of consistency was really across the board, and that's what's frustrating. We have guys who won't close out properly and get driven on, we've got guys who offensively will make the same pass thinking it's not going to be a turnover again, our shot selection is starting to go the other direction. Those things are correctable, and it starts with me. I've got to do a better job of putting guys in position to be successful and I've got to figure out the best combination of players. We are a young team — there is no question about that — but we can't use that as an excuse forever. We're six games into the regular season and we played a couple of exhibition games, it's really time for some of these guys to start growing up; what I mean by that is showing a maturity to be consistent every time you play the game."

On what changed defensively after halftime: "We knew going into the game that they are an extremely good offensive team, that's their identity — they make 3s and they normally take care of the basketball. We forced them into a lot of turnovers tonight, but you keep playing with fire and you're going to get burned and that's what happened. They hit a couple of 3s to stretch the game out, that's really the story. We had so many what we call self-inflicted wounds offensively, we'd miss a layup or have a careless pass for a turnover. Those things are very frustrating and we've got to correct them because we put our defense in such a bind because of our inability to score. We go on long droughts without scoring."

On Rodrick Sikes: "Obviously he hit a big shot, I think he has a knack for scoring the basketball. What I like about that is even though he took 13 out of his 17 shots from 3, he was able to get to the free-throw line as well. That's what he does, that's part of his job to be a dynamic scorer for us and I think he did a pretty good job tonight."

UP NEXT
The Jags host New Orleans on Sunday at 3:05 p.m.

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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—USA—