Box Score MOBILE, Ala. ? South Alabama seniors Daon Merritt and Demetric Bennett made their day a special one on Thursday, as the duo led the Jaguars to an easy 81-61 win over New Orleans at the Mitchell Center.
Merritt had a game-high 22 points after getting engaged during pregame Senior Day ceremonies, and Bennett had 20 points and 11 rebounds, as the Jaguars (24-5, 15-2 Sun Belt Conference) moved one win away from claiming the No. 1 seed in the Sun Belt Tournament.
The Jaguars won their sixth straight against UNO, which has not defeated USA since Jan. 8, 2005.
“We just got beat by a better team tonight,” said UNO head coach Joe Pasternack. “We missed some shots early that we normally make and that affected us on both ends of the floor.”
Bo McCalebb led the Privateers (18-11, 8-9 Sun Belt) with 19 points on 8-of-18 shooting, and Kyndall Dykes had 15. UNO shot just 29 percent in the first half and 36 percent overall.
The Jaguars used constant pressure defensively in the first half and never gave UNO a chance. The hosts used a 15-2 run to grab a 25-8 lead with 7:26 left in the first half
USA, which forced 10 turnovers in the first half, shot 55 percent in the frame to take a 42-19 halftime advantage.
The Privateers took advantage of a sluggish Jaguar squad in the second half, outscoring USA 13-5 early in the frame to cut USA's lead to 47-32. UNO got as close as 14 points before USA rallied with a 9-0 spurt to make it 57-34 with 10:50 left.
The Jaguars, who improved to 16-0 at home, led by as many as 28 in the half.
“We have done a good job all year of bouncing back,” Pasternack said. “We will have to do it again on Saturday, because North Texas is an awfully good team.”
UNO will host North Texas at 7 p.m. on Saturday at the Human Performance Center. The Privateers will honor their seniors prior to the game.
