University of South Alabama Athletics

ORLANDO, Fla. —  South Alabama Men's Basketball led by as many as eight in the first half and took a two-point lead into halftime, but UCF connected on 17 three-pointers to defeat the Jaguars 76-69 Tuesday night at Addition Financial Arena. The loss dropped South Alabama to 1-2, while UCF remained unbeaten at 3-0.

Aaron Goldstein led South Alabama with 20 points, knocking down six three-pointers, while Stephen Williams recorded his second consecutive double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Roderick Williams Jr. added nine points on 4-of-5 shooting off the bench.

South Alabama led by as many as eight in the first half and held a 34-32 advantage at the break. UCF moved ahead behind nine second-half three-pointers, with Carmelo Pacheco and Dior Johnson finishing with 24 points apiece.

• After UCF opened with a 5-0 lead, South Alabama answered and used a 9-0 run to build a 16-10 advantage. Langsy knocked down a three-pointer during the stretch, while Stephen Williams and Roderick Williams Jr. added baskets inside.

• Goldstein connected from deep with 7:31 remaining in the first half to give the Jaguars a 24-16 lead, their largest advantage of the night.

• South Alabama led 34-26 with 1:03 left before Pacheco hit two three-pointers in the final 43 seconds to trim the Jaguars' halftime lead to 34-32.

• Davaughn Hueitt opened the second half with a putback and free throw to push the lead to 37-32. UCF answered with nine straight points, taking the lead on a Pacheco three-pointer with 16:35 remaining.

• The Knights extended their advantage to 61-49 with 8:55 left. South Alabama responded with a 9-3 stretch, capped by Goldstein's fifth three-pointer, to pull within 64-58 with 6:22 remaining.

• UCF pushed the margin back to 12 at 72-60 with 2:59 left. Goldstein made two free throws and another three-pointer to cut the deficit to seven with 54 seconds remaining, but Johnson hit four free throws in the final 23 seconds to secure the win.

• Goldstein finished with 20 points, shooting 6-of-12 from three-point range and 2-of-2 at the free-throw line. He added three rebounds and an assist.

• Stephen Williams totaled 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting and a game-high 11 rebounds. He contributed three assists, two steals and two blocks.

• Roderick Williams Jr. scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting, adding three rebounds and an assist in 11 minutes off the bench.

• Langsy finished with seven points, a team-high four assists and a steal.

• Hueitt recorded six points and three rebounds, while Peyton Law added four points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals.

• Lenni Kunzewitsch contributed three points, two rebounds and a steal. Diego Roman finished with two points, two rebounds, an assist and a steal.

• South Alabama outscored UCF 36-8 in the paint and held a 36-29 rebounding advantage.

• The Jaguars grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and scored 18 second-chance points.

• South Alabama shot 45.8 percent from the field, finishing 27-of-59, including 50 percent in the second half.

• The Jags went 8-of-21 from three-point range and 7-of-9 at the free-throw line.

• UCF finished 17-of-38 from beyond the arc. Pacheco made eight three-pointers, while Johnson added four and totaled nine assists.

• South Alabama forced 10 turnovers and recorded eight steals while committing 12 turnovers.

Quotable 

Head Coach Richie Riley 

On the team's performance:

"We have to play with more toughness and guard better. First off, I'm proud of the fight our guys showed. Outside of Stephen [Williams], our guys haven't played in anything like this. [Peyton] Law hasn't even played in anything like this. I'm proud of the way we played in the first half, but we closed the half really badly and were soft on the ball."

On taking ownership of the zone defense:

"I told the guys in the locker room that right now we're renting the zone. What I mean by that is, when you rent an apartment, you just live there and don't obsess over it. When you own your first house, you're worried about everything and want it to be great. We don't own the zone right now; we're just renting it. Until we start to own it and take pride in it defensively, we won't be good defensively.

"I'm not concerned about the threes because every game guys hit them. It's that we're not playing with a lot of force, and everything is pretty clean. For us to have a good zone and a good team, we need to own it. We'll get them there, and we'll get them to understand how to play with more force."

South Alabama faces Loyola Marymount Thursday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. CT, in Pensacola, Fla. in the Coastal Classic at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Fla.

For complete coverage of South Alabama men's basketball, follow the Jaguars on social media at @SouthAlabamaMBB on X and Instagram, /SouthAlabamaJaguars on Facebook, or visit USAJaguars.com.