Game 10 • Alabama A&M Bulldogs (2-6) at South Alabama Jaguars (5-4)
December 17, 2019 • 7 p.m. • Mitchell Center (5,520) • Mobile, Ala.
THE COACHES
South Alabama
Richie Riley (Eastern Kentucky, 2005)
Record at USA: 22-21 (2nd year)
Overall Record: 57-49 (4th year)
Record vs. Alabama A&M: 1-0
Alabama A&M
Dylan Howard (UAB, 1992)
Record at AAMU: 7-33 (2nd year) Â
Overall Record: Same
LAST GAME
South Alabama fell 75-57 at Richmond on Dec. 8. Alabama A&M let Miami pull away late in an 88-74 loss on Saturday.
NEXT GAME
The Jaguars open Sun Belt play Thursday against Appalachian State. The Bulldogs host North Alabama on Friday.
ON THE AIR
Radio: 99.5 FM The Jag; J.T. Crabtree (pxp)
Web:
995thejag.com/listen (audio);
ESPN+ (video); J.D. Byars (pxp), Pat Greenwood (color)
RANKINGS (ratings through Dec. 15)
USA: #154 NET, #145 Sagarin
AAMU: #323 NET, #337 Sagarin
THE SERIES
USA leads 4-0.
Current streak: USA, 4 wins
Last meeting: South Alabama 79, Alabama A&M 67 (12/19/19)
AAMU's last win in Mobile: None
USA's record at the Mitchell Center: 3-0
USA's record in Mobile: 4-0
USA's home streak: Won 4
USA's longest winning / losing streak in series: 4 / 0
Notes: South Alabama has won all four games against Alabama A&M by an average of 18.5 points… The first meeting came in Jag Gym during the 1998-99 season, USA's last one before moving into the Mitchell Center… The Jags played just two more games in Jag Gym before moving permanently.
OPENING TIP
All four games in the series have taken place in Mobile and have been decided by double-digits. Last year's contest — a 79-67 USA win — was the closest decision of the four.
South Alabama has posted more points in the second half than the first seven times in nine games this season. Coming into the Richmond game, the Jaguars were averaging 45.1 points in the second half but were held to a season-low 33 by the Spiders.
The team is putting up 31.7 points before halftime and 43.8 points after halftime this year.
USA was held to a season-low 33.9% shooting from the floor at Richmond, marking the first time this year the Jags were held below 42%. They entered the game ranked 25th in Division I in field-goal percentage.
South Alabama is currently second in the conference at 47.3% and have four games at 50% or better.
The Jaguars converted just 66.7% at the free-throw line against Richmond but still holds the top spot in the Sun Belt in free-throw percentage, shooting 74.1%. They have twice hit over 87% (min. 20 FTM) this season.
Josh Ajayi recorded 11 points his last time out to move into a tie with Demetric Bennett for eighth in school history with 1,405 points. Ajayi also tallied his 500th career field goal to rank 10th at USA.
Ajayi needs five rebounds to tie Henry Williams for fifth in South Alabama's career history with 695.
Ajayi had 20 points last season vs. Alabama A&M, the most by a Jaguar against the Bulldogs in the series' history.
Andre Fox shared team-high honors vs. Richmond with 12 points, extending his nine-game double-digit scoring streak. He leads the team and is tied for third in the Sun Belt with 17.1 points per game.
Herb McGee tied Fox with 12 points, setting new season highs in both points and 3-pointers (3).
Chad Lott just missed out on a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds. Seven of those rebounds came on the offensive end, the most by a Jaguar since Don MuepoKelly had eight at UNLV in the 2016-17 season opener.
Both of Alabama A&M's wins this season are against in-state schools (Troy, Jacksonville State). AAMU is 2-1 against Alabama schools and 0-5 against schools outside the state.
AAMU's six losses have come by an average of 26.7 points, including three by 30 or more.
The Bulldogs are averaging just 12.1 free throws per contest and rank 348th in Division in free throw attempts.
Head coach Richie Riley on Alabama A&M
On Tuesday's game: "We're excited to play with some consistency – we'll be playing three games this week, which is great. I think we've played twice in the last three weeks. We've practiced a lot and I feel like we've grown some; we're obviously going to find out tomorrow night and the rest of this week. It's good to be back home; we've not been at home in a long time. Alabama A&M is going to be another challenging game. They played Miami tough on the road on Saturday. They lost by 14 but were in the game up until the end. They beat Troy and Jacksonville State, so they have a good team. They have some good, young pieces, and some veteran guys coming back that played against us last year. They have a lot of Alabama kids, so they'll be excited and ready to compete. "
On playing better in the first half: "There's no question we have to get off to better starts. We've been trying to work on that in practice, doing a lot of high-energy things early, trying to get revved up early instead of taking a while to get loose. It's been frustrating. It's caused us to be in some dog fights where we probably shouldn't have been. In the La Salle game, we dug a hole early and fought back. We were depleted a little bit, ran out of juice and got into foul trouble. The game was determined because we got down and we had to fight and scrap. If we came out early and played like we were capable of playing, I don't think we would have needed to come back from 18 down. It's certainly an emphasis that we have to get off to better starts and not put so much pressure on ourselves in the second half. We need to focus on building leads instead of coming back later."
On Alabama A&M: "They have good players and really good young guys. Their leading scorer, Cameron Alford, is a freshman, and is a really good driver and can score on all three levels. Garrett Hicks was really good for them at Miami, and Cameron Tucker is the third (freshman). They're playing with a high level of confidence. The thing about Alabama A&M is they've had to play so many guarantee games, their record is not what it would be in a normal schedule. Being the head coach at Nicholls State, I lived that, having to play a lot of guarantee games. It makes it tough on your guys early. They have a heckuva team. These freshmen are growing every single game. TJ Parham brings a veteran presence to them. They have a good team, which is evidenced by how they played against Troy and Jacksonville State."
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give
Â
—USA—