NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Augustine Rubit passed 1,000 career rebounds Saturday night, but Arkansas pulled away late to beat South Alabama 72-60, dropping the Jaguars to 6-6 on the season.
South Alabama trailed by 12 before cutting the deficit to three midway through the second half. The Razorbacks answered with a 6-0 run to regain control and improved to 12-2.
Rubit Nears Sun Belt Rebounding Record
Rubit, a senior, was held to a season-low eight points but pulled down 10 rebounds. The total pushed him past the 1,000-rebound mark for his career and left him two rebounds shy of the Sun Belt Conference career record.
Senior Antoine Allen led all scorers with 21 points, making three 3-pointers and scoring 13 of his points in the second half. Junior Mychal Ammons added 14 points and six rebounds.
The Jaguars committed a season-high 20 turnovers.
Arkansas placed four players in double figures. Bobby Portis scored 15 points, 12 of them in the first half, and Rashad Madden added 12, including eight after halftime. Michael Qualls and Alandise Harris scored 11 and 10, respectively.
South Alabama is 6-1 at the Mitchell Center this season and 0-5 in road and neutral-site games. After a Christmas break, the Jaguars travel to Las Cruces, N.M., to face New Mexico State on Saturday, Dec. 28, at 8 p.m. CST.
Wake Forest Beats Lady Jaguars
Wake Forest defeated the South Alabama women 92-66 on Friday evening in Winston-Salem, N.C., as two Demon Deacons combined for 51 points.
Dearica Hamby posted game highs of 31 points and 11 rebounds for her ninth double-double of the season. She shot 12-of-20 from the field and added four assists and four steals. Chelsea Douglas scored 20 points on 7-of-19 shooting with five assists and four steals.
Wake Forest forced 25 South Alabama turnovers, including 15 steals. The Demon Deacons outscored the Lady Jaguars 50-18 in the paint and 31-14 in points off turnovers, and they won the rebounding battle 51-28, with 24 offensive boards.
Meghan Dunn led South Alabama with 17 points, all in the second half, shooting 6-of-11 from the floor and 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Ronneka Robertson added 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting, and Jennifer Johnson had nine points, nine rebounds and a career-high four blocked shots.
The Lady Jaguars, 2-8 under first-year coach Terry Fowler, will break for Christmas and open Sun Belt play on Jan. 1 against Western Kentucky at the Mitchell Center.
Football Staff and Recruiting
South Alabama head coach Joey Jones is searching for a new wide receivers coach after Jerry Mack accepted the head coaching job at North Carolina Central University last week.
College football recruiting is in an NCAA dead period through Jan. 3. During that time, coaches may call prospects but may not have in-person contact with them on campus or anywhere else.
Men’s Tennis Releases 2014 Schedule
The South Alabama men’s tennis team released its 2014 spring schedule, which includes a six-match homestand and two tournaments. The Jaguars open the season in Tallahassee, Fla., against Florida A&M and Florida State, and two ranked opponents could appear among their final three home matches.
The Sun Belt Conference tournament is scheduled for April 18-20 in New Orleans.