South Alabama led from start to finish but had to survive a late New Orleans charge to win 62-60 in the first round of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, earning a trip to Hot Springs, Ark., for the next stage of the event.
The sixth-seeded Jaguars will face third-seeded Troy at 9 p.m. Sunday. South Alabama’s Sun Belt Tournament win came after the Jaguars watched a 16-point second-half lead shrink to a single point with about a minute to play.
Fast Start
Domonic Tilford opened the scoring with a 3-pointer, and New Orleans’ Jaroslav Tyrna answered with a 3 of his own seconds later. That was the only tie of the game.
South Alabama followed with a 13-4 run over the next five and a half minutes. The Privateers responded with an 11-4 spurt to pull within 20-18, but they would get no closer the rest of the half.
Ronald Douglas injured his right shoulder on an offensive possession in the first half, left the floor and went to the locker room, and did not return before halftime. His replacement, Philip Tabet, sparked a 15-3 run over seven minutes when he converted a jumper while being fouled by Jahmal Burroughs and made the free throw. The Jaguars took a 13-point lead into the break.
Building the Lead
A Tilford layup early in the second half pushed the margin back to 15. New Orleans used a 9-2 run over the next five minutes to cut the deficit to 43-35, but South Alabama answered with a 12-4 run over about seven minutes. That stretch gave the Jaguars their largest lead of the night, 16 points, with 8:29 remaining.
Privateers Rally
From there, South Alabama went more than four minutes without a field goal or free throw. New Orleans put together a 14-1 run to cut the lead to 56-53 with 3:27 left. During the drought, the Jaguars missed three shots and DeAndre Coleman missed two free throws before Tilford made one of two at the line to end it.
Coleman hit a jumper with 2:54 left to make it a five-point game. Kyndall Dykes made two free throws after a foul by LaShun Watson, and Justin Archie made two more after Tilford fouled him with 1:01 remaining, trimming the Jaguar lead to one.
Closing Seconds
Brandon Davis scored on a layup and was fouled with 33 seconds left, putting South Alabama back up by three, though he missed the free throw. Dykes missed a 3-point attempt with 25 seconds left, and Davis grabbed the rebound and was fouled by Tyrna. Davis missed both free throws, and after New Orleans rebounded, he fouled T.J. Worley, his fifth personal foul.
Worley made the first free throw and missed the second, and the Privateers could not convert the follow, leaving the score 60-58 with 12 seconds remaining. Tyrna fouled Tilford with seven seconds left, and Tilford made both free throws for a four-point lead. New Orleans missed a 3-point attempt with four seconds left, and Dykes scored at the buzzer for the final margin.
Leading Scorers
Tilford led South Alabama with 13 points. Watson added 11 points, and Douglas finished with 11 points and five rebounds. Tabet had six points and five rebounds.
Dykes led all scorers with 17 points and added 10 rebounds for a double-double. Worley was the only other Privateer in double figures with 15 points.
By the Numbers
- Field goal percentage: South Alabama 47 percent, New Orleans 38 percent.
- 3-point percentage: South Alabama 40 percent, New Orleans 33 percent.
- Free throw percentage: New Orleans 76 percent, South Alabama 61 percent.
- Points in the paint: South Alabama 28, New Orleans 22.
- Points off turnovers: South Alabama 15, New Orleans 12.
- Second-chance points: South Alabama 13, New Orleans 6.
- Fast-break points: New Orleans 7, South Alabama 4.
- Bench points: 21 apiece.
Coleman has recorded 10 rebounds in each of his last four games and reached 500 career rebounds during the game. He leads the Sun Belt in rebounding at 8.3 per game.
South Alabama improved to 15-1 this season when leading at halftime, including 9-0 against Sun Belt opponents. The Jaguars need three more victories to win the Sun Belt Tournament title and the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Update: Lady Jaguars Also Hosted First-Round Game
The men’s game was the second half of a first-round doubleheader at the Mitchell Center. Earlier in the evening, the fifth-seeded Lady Jaguars hosted 12th-seeded Florida International in a 5 p.m. first-round game of the Sun Belt women’s tournament.
The remaining rounds of both tournaments are scheduled for March 7-10 in Hot Springs, Ark. The women’s championship game is set to be televised on ESPN-Plus. The men’s quarterfinals will be available on ESPN-Plus, and the men’s championship game will air on ESPN2. The Sun Belt Tournament champion receives the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
