NEW ORLEANS – The University of South Alabama's 10th-seeded women's basketball team's (11-20) season came to a close as it lost 65-53 in the quarterfinals of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament to second-seeded Texas-Arlington (22-7) on Thursday night at Lakefront Arena.  After the Jaguars cut a 13-point deficit from the third quarter to just one point two minutes into the fourth quarter, the Mavericks went on a 9-3 run to pull away for the victory.
 
"We felt like we had a really good opportunity to pull off the upset tonight," said South Alabama head coach Terry Fowler.  "I thought we played well enough to do that in spots.  We get the game to a three-point margin, but then we have two back-to-back turnovers in the backcourt that they convert and score to extend their lead.  I think that was the difference in the ballgame.  I'm extremely proud of our young ladies and the fight we showed in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament."
 
Leading 45-44 Texas-Arlington capitalized off a few South Alabama mistakes for its run in the fourth quarter.  After a turnover by Candice Williams, the Mavs produced a layup and then hit a three-pointer after a pair of missed free throws by the Jags.  Colby Davis responded in the next possession with a three to cut the Jags' deficit back down to three.  After a jumper in the paint for the Mavs, they got a follow-up layup that came off a steal.
 
Chyna Ellis split a pair of free throws with three and a half minutes left in the game, and the Jags and Mavs traded a pair of free throw to make it 56-50 with two minutes remaining.  The Jags' offense was only able to produce one more basket the rest of the game.  Erin Autio made a three-pointer from the top of the key with 33 seconds left, but Texas-Arlington went 6-6 at the charity stripe to end the game.
 
The Mavs went on a 9-0 run in the third quarter for the 13-point lead, their biggest of the game.  The Jags responded with a 9-3 run of their own to cut their deficit to six points at 45-39 at the end of the third quarter.  India Hall began the run with a jumper with four minutes left in the quarter, and Davis then added a pair of free throws.  Shaforia Kines scored on a fast break layup after picking up a loose ball for a steal, and Autio drained a three right after coming off the bench.
 
South Alabama scored the first five points of the fourth quarter as Autio hit another three-pointer and added a pair of free throws.  The Jags had a chance to lead for the first time since four minutes into the game, but a layup by Kines on a two-on-one fast break didn't fall in.
 
The teams traded baskets to start the game, but Texas-Arlington was red-hot shooting in the quarter.  It had just three misses, going 7-10 from the field and 3-5 from three and made all four free throw attempts.  With the game tied up at 9-9, the Mavs ended the quarter on a 12-3 run.
 
The second quarter was pretty even between the two teams, as the Mavs outscored the Jags by just one point (11-10).  Both teams' shooting were cold in the first half of the quarter with just three baskets scored.  Texas-Arlington acquired a 12-point lead with less than two minutes left in the first half, but the Jags scored two baskets, a three-pointer by Genesis Perrymond and layup by Kines, to cut their deficit down to seven points.  The Mavs entered halftime with a 32-22 lead by banking in a three with a few seconds before the horn went off.
 
South Alabama shot 33.3% (16-48) from the field, but the three-ball was a key factor for the Jags as they went 9-20 (45%) from deep.
 
Texas-Arlington finished the game shooting 35.3% (18-51) from the field and 20% (5-25) from three, but went 24-27 (88.9%) from the line with the three misses coming late in the fourth quarter.  South Alabama was just 12-20 (60.0%) from the charity stripe.
 
"(Genesis) Perrymond has been shooting the ball really well," said Fowler.  "So she just kind of continued that.  We got a big lift from Erin Autio tonight, who has struggled most of the year but had an outstanding night tonight… came in and went 3-3 (from three) and gave us a big lift.  If we're going to beat a team like this, you've got to make three's.  One thing we're probably disappointed in that could have helped us was we shot 60% from the free throw line."
 
The Mavs had the advantage in the paint, outscoring the Jags 22-8 while also producing 18 points off 14 turnovers by South Alabama.
 
The tandem of Cierra Johnson and Rekekah VanDijk came up huge for Texas-Arlington as they shot a combined 11-17 (57.9%) from the field and 16-17 (94.1%) from the line.  Johnson had 20 points, three assists and four steals while VanDijk had 19 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.
 
The lone senior on the team, Davis had 10 points in her final collegiate game.  She made a three and went 7-10 from the charity stripe.
 
"I'm extremely proud of our one senior Colby Davis, who has not practiced since Feb. 6th," said Fowler.  "She just showed up late on game days and gave everything she had for the University of South Alabama."
 
Perrymond lead the Jags in scoring with 12 points by going 4-8 from three and also had two assists, two steals and a block.  All four three-pointers came in the first 21 minutes of the game that helped keep the Jags in striking distance for their run in the end of the third quarter and beginning of the fourth quarter.
 
Autio provided a big boost off the bench in the last 11 minutes of the game, as all 11 points scored came during that time.  She made every single one of her shots with three three-pointers and two free throws while also pulling down three rebounds.
 
Join the Hardwood Club, the women's basketball specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All gifts to the Hardwood Club go directly to support the South Alabama women's basketball program. For more information on how you can join visit:  http://jaguarathleticfund.com/sports/2013/3/13/Hardwood%20Club.aspx?id=28
 
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).