Game Notes

Game 26 • South Alabama Jaguars (13-12, 6-6) at Appalachian State Mountaineers (11-15, 6-7)
February 15, 2018 • 6:30 p.m. CST • Holmes Center (8,325) • Boone, N.C.

THE COACHES
South Alabama
Matthew Graves (Butler, 1998)
Record at USA: 64-90 (5th year)
Overall Record: Same
Record vs. App State: 5-1

Appalachian St.
Jim Fox (SUNY Geneseo, 1995)
Record at App State: 41-75 (4th year)
Overall Record: Same

LAST GAME
South Alabama blitzed Arkansas State 87-67 on Saturday. Appalachian State picked up its second straight road win, defeating Coastal Carolina 81-66.

NEXT GAME
The Jaguars go to Coastal Carolina Saturday. The Mountaineers host Troy.

ON THE AIR
Radio: 99.5 FM The Jag; J.D. Byars (pxp)
On the web: 995thejag.com/listen (audio); ESPN3 (video)

RANKINGS (Through Feb. 13)
USA: #258 RPI, #227 Sagarin
App: #235 RPI, #221 Sagarin

THE SERIES
USA leads 5-1.

Current winning streak: South Alabama, 4 wins
App State's last win in series: 64-53 (1/22/15) in Boone
Last meeting: South Alabama 83, Appalachian State 77 (1/20/18)
USA's last win at the Holmes Center: 75-71 (2/18/16)
App State's last win at the Holmes Center: 64-53 (1/22/15)
USA's record at the Holmes Center: 1-1
USA's road streak: Won 1
USA's longest winning / losing streak in series: 4 / 1

Notes: The two schools split a pair of games in 2014-15, the first two in the series, with each team winning at home, before the Jaguars swept the 2015-16 season series and the only meeting between the two schools last year.

OPENING TIP
Of the six previous meetings between the two schools, only two have been in Boone — Thursday will be the third. South Alabama leads the series 5-1.

The Jaguars have won back-to-back Sun Belt games by 37 points, the largest margin over a two-game span since 2007-08.

USA exploded for 87 points Saturday, tied for the most vs. a DI opponent in regulation since 2014-15.

The Jags tied their season high with 22 assists on Saturday, and recorded a positive assist/turnover ratio for the third time in four games with 16 turnovers. The team has a 5-2 record when posting more assists than turnovers.

USA has shot 50 percent or better in a half three times in the last two games, including 60.0 percent in the second half against Arkansas State, which is the second-highest percentage in a half against a Division I opponent this season.

South Alabama has outrebounded each of its last two opponents by a combined plus-15, the team's best over two games since November. The Jags are 10-1 this season with six straight victories when winning the rebounding battle.

Rodrick Sikes recorded his fifth 30-point game of the year on Saturday with a game-high 32 on five 3-pointers. Sikes' effort broke the school record for 30-point games in a season, pulling ahead of Augustine Rubit, Demetric Bennett, Jeff Hodge and Terry Catledge. The Jags are 2-3 when Sikes scores 30 or more.

Josh Ajayi went 9 for 11 from the floor for 21 points vs. Arkansas State, his fourth 20-point outing of the year. Ajayi is averaging 16.4 points and 7.9 rebounds in his last seven outings.

Sikes and Ajayi have scored 20 points in the same game three times this season. The Jags are 2-1 in those games.

In Trhae Mitchell's last five games, he is averaging 14.8 points and 5.6 rebounds, is shooting 70.0 percent from the field, and has a 12-5 assist/turnover ratio. He had 13 points, four assists and three blocks on Saturday.

Nick Davis is averaging 10.0 rebounds in his last two games, and tied his career high with 11 vs. Arkansas State. He had seven boards combined in his previous three contests.

South Alabama's second-ranked 3-point defense (.300) will be facing the league's top team in 3-pointers per game (9.2). Ronshad Shabazz is tied for fourth (2.5) and Justin Forrest is tied for 11th (2.1).

Shabazz, the Sun Belt's third-leading scorer (19.5 ppg), was held to three points on 1-for-14 shooting in the first meeting in Mobile. He is averaging 23.0 points in his last four games.

PREVIEWING THURSDAY
Head coach Matthew Graves on Appalachian State
On going back on the road after two wins: "We understand that going on the road this year has been difficult for us, but I feel like we are playing really good basketball right now and we have to take the same mindset that we do at home, where we control what we can control, and go out and play extremely hard. At the end of the game, we have to be proud of the effort we've put in and the score will take care of itself."

On Rodrick Sikes' role in the last two games: "Rodrick has clearly impacted both of our wins last weekend in different ways. He draws so much attention defensively, so he allows other guys to get opportunities, whether that's from him being patient and spacing the floor, or by setting good screens and they don't help off him. He also has the ability to play against the zone like we saw on Saturday, where he can find open areas and get out and sprint in transition and get in space that way."

On Appalachian State: "They do a great job of getting the ball out in transition, and getting their shooters opportunities to take the 3-point shot. We did not do a good job in our transition defense or contesting their 3-point shooters last time out. We have to do a much better of that if we expect to go into Boone and get a win."

On Ronshad Shabazz: "He is an all-league guy that we all have to defend as a team. We can't rely on one guy to limit his opportunities; it's going to take a team effort because he is such a great scorer."

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—