MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama shot better than 67 percent from the field and never trailed in a 91-70 victory over Florida Atlantic at the Mitchell Center, its fourth consecutive home win.
The victory moved the Jaguars above .500 in Sun Belt Conference play.
Early Run Creates Separation
Florida Atlantic stayed close through the first 10 minutes, cutting the deficit to one point. South Alabama then went on a 15-3 run and led by as many as 15 points several times in the final four minutes of the half before taking a 46-31 lead into halftime.
Owls Fight Back
The teams traded baskets early in the second half, and South Alabama stretched its lead to 60-39 with 14:13 remaining. Florida Atlantic responded with a 15-5 run in just under four minutes to pull within 65-54.
The Owls got as close as 77-67 with 4:48 left, but the Jaguars closed the game on a 14-3 run.
Arrow Praises Ball Movement
South Alabama finished with 26 assists.
“I thought tonight that we went ahead and put them away,” head coach Ronnie Arrow said. “We shared the ball really well tonight. Twenty-six assists is super. We executed our plays and in transition. When we took the lead early, our defense got steals, layups and deflections. We played with a lot of energy to start the game.”
Davis Leads Five in Double Figures
Brandon Davis led South Alabama with 23 points, making 9 of 10 field goal attempts and 5 of 6 free throws without attempting a 3-pointer. Domonic Tilford scored 17 points and made three of the team’s six 3-pointers.
LaShun Watson added 12 points and shared game-high assist honors with DeAndre Coleman, with seven each. Bryan Sherrer scored 11 points and CJ Garner added 10.
Florida Atlantic’s Paul Graham III led all scorers with 27 points on 10-of-22 shooting, including 3 of 8 from 3-point range, and made all four of his free throws. Shavar Richardson scored 24, and no other Owl reached double figures.
Team Statistics
- Blocks: South Alabama 8, Florida Atlantic 1
- Turnovers: South Alabama 13, Florida Atlantic 9
- Points in the paint: South Alabama 46, Florida Atlantic 20
- Fast-break points: South Alabama 27, Florida Atlantic 2
Up Next
South Alabama travels to Middle Tennessee on Thursday for a 7 p.m. game. The Blue Raiders won the teams’ earlier meeting this season 82-67 at the Mitchell Center. A South Alabama win would move the Jaguars past Middle Tennessee into third place in the Sun Belt’s East Division.
