Box Score

Season Statistics

MOBILE, Ala. -- Brian Snider led all scorers with 20 points and freshman Andre Ricks added a career-high 11 points, but South Alabama defended its homecourt with an 81-59 victory. The Broncos (3-7) turned the ball over 20 times while the Jaguars (9-2) turned the ball over only nine times and hit 11 three-pointers.

South Alabama opened the game with a three-pointer by Carlos Smith and never trailed the rest of the game. USA built a 10-point lead, 17-7, less than seven minutes into the game (17-7) and still led by 11, 25-14, with 9:55 remaining after a Mario Jointer three-pointer. The Broncos responded with an 8-2 run with baskets by Snider, Ricks and Derek Fracalossi to pull back within five before the Jaguars answered with back-to-back threes to push their lead back to 11, 33-22, with 5:51 left in the half.

The Broncos came back again to cut the lead to six, 38-32, with 1:54 remaining in the half, but the Jaguars scored the final three points of the half to take a nine-point lead into the lockerroom. The Broncos shot 52.4 percent in the first half (11-of-21), but committed 13 of their 20 turnovers in the half. For the game the Broncos were outscored 30-7 in points off turnovers.  

"I thought we made great progress in Hawaii, but the neutral site games are over and what we didn't respond to tonight was a pretty hostile road atmosphere," head coach Steve Hawkins said. "We just didn't have good energy tonight. There are going to be better nights for the Broncos."

Western Michigan kept the game within 8-to-13 points early in the second half before South Alabama assumed control with a 14-2 run over 4:47 to take a 21-point lead, 65-44, with 10:21 remaining. The Broncos cut the deficit to 16 before it increased back out to 20 points or more for the rest of the game.

South Alabama hit 49.1 percent of its shots and 11-of-29 three-pointers. Western Michigan finished the game shooting 38 percent from the field after converting on only 8-of-29 field goals (27.6 percent) and 1-of-12 three-pointers in the second half. The Broncos did outrebound the Jaguars, 36-29, and converted 11 offensive rebounds into 13 second-chance points.

Snider hit 6-of-11 shots and 7-of-10 free throws to lead the Bronco scoring effort. Ricks scored all of his points in the first half on three three-pointers and a long jumper just inside the arc. Joe Reitz pulled down 10 rebounds to lead all players.

"If there was one real bright spot tonight offensively it was Brian and the way he played with a lot more confidence," Hawkins said. 

Jointer led four Jaguars in double figures with 15 points.

The Broncos wrap up their six-game homestand next Wednesday night with their Mid-American Conference opener against preseason favorite Ohio (6-2) at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio, at 7 p.m.