GULFPORT, Miss. - Southern Miss shot 60 percent in the second half en route to a 78-58 win over New Orleans in the second game of the South Mississippi Christmas Classic on Monday.
Reserve forward Josimar Ayarza led the Golden Eagles (8-1) with 16 points, while Angelo Johnson added 15. Junior college transfer Gary Flowers tallied 11 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocked shots.
Charles Carmouche led UNO (5-6) with 17 points but was the only Privateer in double figures. UNO struggled without senior guard Billy Humphrey, who was limited to four points in just six minutes due to illness.
He did not play in the second half.
USM shot 53 percent overall but exploded in the second half. The Golden Eagles went on a 10-0 run midway through the frame and outscored UNO 29-14 in the final 11:55.
The Privateers shot 24 percent in the second half and 26 percent overall. It was their fourth consecutive loss.
"We just couldn't score tonight," said UNO head coach Joe Pasternack. "We competed for 30 minutes, but we just ran out of gas. I think USM is a top 25 team and definitely an NCAA Tournament team. And without (Humphrey), we just couldn't keep up."
Both teams were cold to start, as the schools combined to make two field goals in the first five minutes. But UNO stayed cold for a little longer, as the Privateers missed 12 of their first 13 field goal attempts.
UNO shot just 29 percent for the half, and USM got 10 points from Maurice Bolden (13 points overall) to grab a 33-25 lead at halftime.
The Privateers warmed up a little early in the second half, and Devin McDonald's 3-pointer cut the USM lead to 49-44 with 12:15 to play.
But the Golden Eagles went on a 10-0 run to stretch the lead to 59-44 with 9:45 remaining. UNO got no closer than 13 the rest of the way and trailed by as many as 23.
UNO will continue the three-day tournament with a 4:30 p.m. contest against North Florida on Tuesday. The Ospreys defeated Canisius 65-61 in Monday's opening game.
