LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The University of South Alabama men's basketball team defeated Little Rock 52-43 Saturday in Sun Belt Conference action at Jack Stephens Center.

The win extended the Jaguars' win streak to three games, and snapped a two-game losing skid to Little Rock (11-7, 6-1 Sun Belt). Chad Lott led South Alabama with 14 points, while Josh Ajayi turned in 13 points and finished one rebound shy of his third consecutive double-double. 

 USA (11-7, 3-3 Sun Belt) will return to action Thu., Jan. 16, when it hosts Georgia State at 7 p.m. in a Sun Belt Conference contest at the Mitchell Center. 

 GAME FACTS
- South Alabama opened the game with a 7-0 scoring run, and forced a pair of Little Rock turnovers to score four of the seven points during the run. Little Rock later tied the score 9-9 on a three pointer by Marko Lukic.
- The Jaguars took a 15-12 lead following a pair of free throws from Josh Ajayi. But the Trojans responded with a 7-0 run to take a 19-15 lead at the 4:11 mark of the first half. A three from the corner from Lukic pushed the Trojan lead to seven points at 22-15 before a driving layup by Andre Fox cut the Jaguar deficit to five points at 22-17, where the score remained until halftime.
- Little Rock pushed its lead to six points following a dunk by Ruot Monyyong, but the Jags responded with back-to-back buckets from Josh Ajayi after forcing a pair of Trojan turnovers to cut the Little Rock lead to 29-27. A pair of Ajayi free throws then tied the score 29-29 before a layup by Herby McGee off of a Trojan turnover gave the Jaguars a 31-29 advantage. A three pointer from left wing by John Pettway then extended the USA lead to 34-29 to cap off an 11-0 Jaguar scoring run. 
- The Trojans cut the their deficit to one point at 41-40 on a three by Lukic, but a driving layup by Chad Lott pushed the USA lead to 43-40. A pair of Kamani Johnson free throws cut the Jaguar lead to one at 43-42 at the 4:23 mark of the second half. A pair of free throws by Lott pushed the Jaguar lead to 45-42 with 2:21 left in the second half, and a driving layup by Ajayi extended the lead to 47-42 with just under two minutes to play in regulation. A pair of free throws by Mitchell, followed by a driving layup from Lott capped the game's scoring. South Alabama held Little Rock without a field goal for the final 5:59 of the game.

NOTES
- The Jaguars were 0-for-6 in three-point attempts in the first half, and shot just 27 percent from the field after finishing 7-for-25 in the half. Little Rock outrebounded the Jaguars 22-11 in the first half of play.
- USA shot 60 percent (12-for-20) from the field in the second half, and outrebounded Little Rock 16-12. 
- Ajayi recorded his third consecutive game scoring in double figures, finishing with 13 points, in addition to nine rebounds, one block and two steals.
- The win marked the Jaguars' first at Little Rock since Jan. 5, 2015. 
- South Alabama finished with just one three pointer in the game, which marked the first game the Jags have had one or fewer threes in a win since Nov. 13, 2009, against Houston Baptist. 
- It is just the third-ever road win when scoring 52 or fewer points, and the first since a 48-47 victory at Denver on Feb. 20, 2011.
- USA improved to 10-0 this season when outshooting the opposition.
- The game also marked the fewest points allowed by a Jaguar team in a Sun Belt Conference road game since a 61-38 win Middle Tennessee on Feb. 3, 2007. 

QUOTES
Head Coach Richie Riley
- On getting the road victory:  "Tonight was certainly a hard, fought game. I felt that this game was going to be won in the trenches like a football game with two good teams that are both really good at running the ball up the middle. It was going to be about who wins the battle. We just had a little more toughness. We had 32 points in the paint to Little Rock's 18. They had 12 at half time and in the second half, we did a tremendous job of being tough enough to get to the rim and do some things. We were there in the first half and had 22 paint touches in the first half and couldn't convert anything. We were able to get ourselves going a little bit in the second half and finish around the rim. It was a heck of a win. 

- On the turnovers by Little Rock:  "We were able to force 22 turnovers tonight. The job Herb [McGee] and [John] Pettway did with their pressure was tremendous. I'm just really proud of our players for the way they responded."

- On the difference in the team over the past few games:  "A few weeks ago or a month ago, really any time during the early part of the season, we probably wouldn't have been able to pull out this type of game. We found a way to win even when things weren't going our way. It's easy to win a game when you hit 15, 16 three's and everything's going your way. It's hard to win when you come out on the road and shoot 28 percent from the field in the first half and don't make a three and only one made three in the entire game. We found a way to win though. We're growing though and not anywhere near where we need to be or hope to be, but we're growing and really playing together right now. We just have to keep building on that."

- On the importance of the turnaround of the team over the past five games:  "It's been big for us. The players have made a commitment to the coaching staff and the program that they are going to give everything that they have. For the seniors and transfers who are only here with us for this season, they want to have a special ending to the season. We're fighting to get there and like I said earlier, we've got a lot of work to do, but our players are just really playing together and connected. That's what we're fighting for, we're fighting for a culture. We just want to get it there to where the players want to play for each other and win so much for each other. Right now we're moving in that direction. That's how you have a really good team. You have to be the most connected team and your culture has to be strong and you have to believe in it. We worked that early on, but we're growing in that where our guys are super connected and really believing in what we're doing. You obviously need good players and we have those types of players, but you have to be together."

UP NEXT
South Alabama will return to action Thu., Jan. 16, when it hosts Georgia State at 7 p.m. in a Sun Belt Conference contest at the Mitchell Center.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with USAJaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at Twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

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