JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – South Alabama men's basketball stormed back from a 16-point deficit to defeat Jacksonville State, 71–65, Wednesday night at Pete Mathews Coliseum. The victory pushes the Jaguars to 6–0, marking the best start in the program's 57-year history.

KEY STATS

• South Alabama surpassed the 1982–83 and 2016–17 squads that previously held the program's best start at 5–0.

• Chaze Harris and Peyton Law powered the Jaguars' offense. Harris shook off a slow first half and took over late, scoring 15 of his 19 points in the second half on 9-of-14 shooting, while adding six rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

• Law dominated inside with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, six rebounds, and two assists. Jayden Cooper added 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting with three rebounds and a steal.

• USA controlled the second half, outscoring the Gamecocks 46–34 and holding them under 39 percent from both the field and the three-point line.

• The Jaguars owned the paint yet again, finishing with a 36–22 scoring advantage inside.

• Jacksonville State attempted 38 threes, hitting 14, while South Alabama went 4-for-14 from deep.

KEY MOMENTS

• Jacksonville State opened the game blistering hot, knocking down six threes in its first 10 possessions to build a 24–8 lead at the 11:30 mark.

• South Alabama responded by closing the half on a 17–7 run, sparked by eight first-half points from Cooper, trimming the deficit to 31–25 at the break.

• The Jaguars carried that momentum into the second half, ripping off an 11–3 run to take their first lead of the night at 44–43 with 11:47 remaining, capped by a perfectly timed backdoor feed from Law to Louis-Jeune.

• After JSU briefly reclaimed the lead with a 9–4 spurt, USA answered with a decisive 19–5 run to close the game. Randy Brady's clutch offensive rebound and kick-out to Adam Olsen for a dagger three sealed the win and quieted the home crowd.

Head Coach Richie Riley 

On his team's resiliency

"Our guys are tough and resilient like this every day. It's a cool deal when you get a group like this from all different backgrounds and in different stages of their careers. They just buy into the work and the true meaning of a team. It's always so visible when you go on the road and play in environments like this. Everything was stacked against us and they kept punching us in the mouth and we could've laid down, but we just kept fighting and stayed together. Games like this are about toughness and competitiveness and that's what this team is about. We found a way and that's what our culture has always been about." 

UP NEXT

South Alabama will continue its road swing as it heads to UAB to take the Blazers on Friday, Nov.21 at 6:30 p.m. CT