LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Antoinette Lewis posted 16 points and nine rebounds, including scoring a pair of baskets in the final minute-plus, to help the University of South Alabama earn a 57-42 Sun Belt Conference women's basketball win Saturday over Little Rock at the Jack Stephens Center.

Lewis was 8-of-9 from the field and she added three blocks to help the Jaguars (14-16, 9-9 Sun Belt) snap a three-game losing streak.  Shaforia Kines recorded 13 points and seven rebounds, Savannah Jones added nine points and eight boards and Kennedi Centers finished with eight and seven, respectively, helping the Jags end the contest with a 41-34 rebounding edge.

Kyra Collier scored 16 points and Teal Battle had 14 to lead the Trojans (11-18, 9-9 SBC), who lost their third straight game to end the regular season.

South Alabama 57, Little Rock 42 (box score)

GAME FACTS
-USA shot 50 percent in the first quarter, hitting three three-pointers in the final four minutes to tie the contest 15-15 going to the second period.
-The Jags held the Trojans without a field goal over the last five-and-a-half minutes of the half, closing on a 13-2 run to lead 32-22 at the break.
-Little Rock was just 2-of-16 from the floor in the third quarter, allowing South to push the advantage to 42-30.
-The Trojans went on an 8-0 run to cut the Jaguar lead to 46-40 midway through the final period, but they would make just two free throws over the final four minutes and 56 seconds.
-South shot 50 percent or better in three of four quarters, ending the game making 44.7 percent from the field.
-Little Rock was credited with 14 steals, but was able to score just 17 points off turnovers in the contest.

NOTES
-The Jaguars and Trojans split the season series, with both teams winning on the other's home court.
-USA snapped Little Rock's 11-game series win streak with its first defeat of the Trojans since Feb. 1, 2014.
-The Jags' last victory in Little Rock prior to this game came on Feb. 5, 2005.
-Little Rock shot 56.9 percent from the floor in the first match-up between the two programs — the best mark against South this season — but its 20.4-percent rate in the contest was the lowest allowed by the Jaguars during the 2019-20 regular season.
-Lewis has recorded 10-plus points in each of the last four outings, and she also led the team on the boards in both games this week.
-It was the 10th straight game that Kines has scored in double figures, while it was the 25th occasion the senior guard has posted a double-digit point total this season.
-Jones' 14 rebounds over the last two contests are the most she has grabbed in a two-game stretch since the first two outings of February, when she collected 16 in match-ups with Troy (Feb. 1) and Louisiana (Feb. 6).
-Centers has pulled down seven or more boards in each of USA's last five games.
-Jayla Morrow made her first start of the year, scoring a season-best eight points to go along with three assists.

THEY SAID IT
Head coach Terry Fowler
On the decision to use primarily a zone defense in the game: "We had made the decision earlier in the week that we were going to go zone.  They wear you out from side to side, they make you defend for 30 seconds and you have these screens set against you that wears the kids' bodies out, which takes its toll at the end of the game.  We made the decision to go with it and see how it worked, and today it was awesome."
On the team's offensive performance: "We focused on getting the ball inside to Antoinette and letting her play from there.  When they started digging in she threw it back out and when they didn't she was able to play one-on-one in the post.  We did a lot of good things with the pick-and-roll where we slipped the ball screen and were able to hit Antoinette going to the basket."
On the final minutes of the game and holding off Little Rock's rally: "It was huge.  They made the run to cut it to six off of turnovers, if we could just take care of the basketball and make them score against our half-court defense we felt good about that.  We got an offensive rebound and a stick back, and Antoinette was able to finish it off for us after we were able to take care of the basketball and grind the clock out."

Junior C Antoinette Lewis
On her performance in the game: "Lately my coaches and teammates have been telling me to post up hard and play more aggressive, and to start going through people's chests instead of taking what was being given to me; I just needed to play a little bit harder.  That's the thing that we have been focusing on.  If we want make the same run that we did last year at the conference tournament and if we want to get the outcome that we want, we have to play harder."
On her baskets down the stretch to help hold off the rally: "Those baskets were must have.  We've watched a lot of film and practiced a lot, we know that the easy, wide open ones are the ones we have to have.  On those possessions today, they tipped it right into my hands and I just focused and finished."

Up next: South Alabama will play in the opening round of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament on Tuesday, with the opponent, time and site to be determined following the conclusion of all the day's league games.

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).

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—USA—