Game Notes

Game 11 • Eastern Illinois Panthers (2-6) at South Alabama Jaguars (5-5)
December 16, 2017 • 3:05 p.m. • Mitchell Center (10,000) • Mobile, Ala.

THE COACHES
South Alabama
Matthew Graves (Butler, 1998)
Record at USA: 56-83 (5th year)
Overall Record: Same
Record vs. EIU: 0-1

Eastern Illinois
Jay Spoonhour (Pittsburg State, 1994)
Record at EIU: 67-87 (6th year)
Overall Record: 173-119 (11th year)

LAST GAME
South Alabama lost 76-75 to Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on Sunday on a pair of late free throws. Eastern Illinois  fell to Green Bay on a late layup, 59-57 on Dec. 6.

NEXT GAME
The Jaguars close out their pre-Christmas schedule on Dec. 21 at Tulane. The Panthers host Western Illinois on Tuesday.

ON THE AIR
Radio: 99.5 FM The Jag; J.D. Byars (pxp)
On the web: 995thejag.com/listen (audio); JagNationTV.com (video)

RANKINGS (Through Dec. 14)
USA: #289 RPI, #259 Sagarin
EIU: #290 RPI, #257 Sagarin

THE SERIES
Eastern Illinois leads 2-0.

Current winning streak: EIU, 2 wins
USA's last win in series: N/A
Last meeting: Eastern Illinois 72, South Alabama 62 (11/26/16)
USA's last win at the Mitchell Center: N/A
EIU's last win the Mitchell Center: N/A
USA's record at home: 0-0
USA's home streak: N/A
USA's longest winning / losing streak in series: 0 / 2

Notes: Eastern Illinois has won the only two meetings between the two schools: 70-61 in the 1985-86 season in Honolulu, Hawai'i at the Seaside Classic, and 72-62 last season in Charleston.

OPENING TIP
South Alabama has lost two straight after winning four times in five games.

After not allowing an opponent to convert 40 percent from distance in the first eight games of the year, each of the Jags' last two opponents have done so, including SIUE's season-high 41.7 percent Sunday. USA entered the contest 14th in the nation in 3-point defense.

USA ranks in the Sun Belt's top four in scoring defense (65.4 ppg, 3rd), field-goal percentage defense (.403, 4th) and 3-point defense (.289, 1st).

The Jaguars are second in the league in blocks per game (4.5) and have rejected 6.7 shots in their last three outings. Nick Davis has a team-high nine in that three-game stretch and is fourth in the conference on the season with 1.8 per game.

South Alabama won the rebounding battle Sunday for the second time in three games and grabbed 13 offensive rebounds, which tied the team's season high. However, the team fell to 4-1 when outrebounding its opponent.

Josh Ajayi grabbed five of the team's 13 offensive boards, tied for the second most by a USA player this season. He has 21 offensive rebounds this season; the rest of the team has combined for 47.

Rodrick Sikes extended his double-digit scoring streak to nine at SIU Edwardsville with a 13-point performance. He recorded eight points in the second half, went 6 for 7 at the free-throw line, and was credited with a career-best three steals.

Jordan Andrews broke out of a scoring slump Sunday with a team-best 15 points, his most in almost a month. After missing all 14 shots in his previous three outings, he converted four of his nine attempts overall and went 3 of 6 from 3-point land.

Andrews also made all four shots at the charity stripe vs. SIUE, improving to 33 for 35 (94.3%) on the season. He leads the Sun Belt and is tied for ninth in the nation.

Trhae Mitchell tied his career high Sunday with eight rebounds. He is second on the team behind Ajayi (6.5 rpg) with 6.4 rebounds per game.

Eastern Illinois had five players score in double-digit points in last season's meeting, and four of those return. Ray Crossland had 15 points, Muusa Dama had 14 and nine rebounds, Terrell Lewis (then known as Cornell Johnston) had 10 points and eight assists, and Montell Goodwin totaled 14 points.

The Panthers are third in the Ohio Valley Conference in both offensive rebounds (12.9 rpg) and offensive rebounding percentage (.347). The Jaguars are third in the Sun Belt in defensive rebounds (28.0 rpg) and fourth in defensive rebounding percentage (.737).

PREVIEWING SATURDAY
Head coach Matthew Graves on Eastern Illinois
On final home game before Christmas: "It's great to be back in the Mitchell Center. We got through finals and now we can focus on becoming a better basketball team. It's going to be a great challenge with Eastern Illinois because they've had the last eight or nine days off for finals. We're going to have to be prepared for whatever they throw at us."

On what he wants to tweak defensively: "We need to be more active in our gaps and close out more effectively, especially on 3-point shooters. In the last two games, teams have really shot it well from '3' so we have to do a better job of closing out and recognizing where the shooters are. We need to do better at communicating and flying around."

On Rodrick Sikes' recent play: "It's nice to have an individual that you can count on for double-digit points, night in and night out. He's certainly filled that role very well. His ability to get to the free-throw line is really good. You're one or two possessions away from going on a 6-0 run and that's really nice to have. Defensively, he's got to continue to embrace and work on getting better, but I'm pleased with his offense so far."

On Eastern Illinois: "With Eastern Illinois, you've got a very experienced team. They'll more than likely start four seniors and a junior that have played together a lot. Defensively, they do a great job of getting in the passing lanes, shooting the gaps and creating live-ball turnovers. We're going to have to be really good in transition. They have guys that can really drive the basketball and get in the paint, so we'll have to do a better job of guarding paint touches. We've really got to finish plays – they do a great job of getting to the offensive glass. We've got to be physical and rebound the basketball."

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).

Join the Jaguar Athletic Fund (JAF) Priority Fund, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to the Priority Fund directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give

—USA—