MOBILE, Ala. – UT Southern men's basketball opened Southern States Athletic Conference play on Thursday night with a hard-fought road matchup at Mobile, ultimately falling 70–61 at Pharr Gymnasium. The Firehawks generated multiple second-half runs but were unable to erase an early deficit despite strong performances from their veteran core.
The Firehawks struck first on a JaMil Wilson layup, and after a free throw from Mike Bell, Jr., held a brief 3–2 lead. A few minutes later, Wilson added a putback to make it 5–2 before Bell, Jr. knocked down a three-pointer at the 17:21 mark to push the lead to 8–4.
From there, the Firehawks hit a scoring drought. Turnovers and missed opportunities in the lane allowed Mobile to go on a 15–3 run, giving UTS its largest deficit of the half at 25–8. UT Southern finally answered when De'Marreon Baldwin connected on a mid-range jumper and Bell, Jr. converted a strong drive to stop the bleeding. A late three by Jack Harper in the final seconds gave the Firehawks needed momentum, trimming the halftime deficit to 32–22.
UT Southern came out firing to open the second half. Antonio Cochran hit a wing three just 24 seconds in, and Wilson and Cochran added key defensive rebounds to keep the Firehawks within striking distance. Baldwin drained a three at the 14:56 mark to make it 41–32, but Mobile responded with a series of second-chance points to push the gap back to double digits.
The Firehawks answered again midway through the half. A three from Eric Robinson, followed by a pair of free throws from Baldwin, cut the deficit to 48–39 with 11:09 remaining. Moments later, Bell, Jr. finished through contact and then converted two technical free throws to bring UT Southern within 59–41 with under seven minutes to play.
UT Southern made one last push in the final minutes. Cochran scored on back-to-back possessions—a three-pointer followed by a driving layup—to cut the margin to 68–52. Robinson then finished a transition layup with just over a minute left to pull the Firehawks to 68–61, but time ran out on the comeback effort.
Bell, Jr. led UT Southern with 19 points, four assists, and two rebounds while shooting 6-of-13 from the field and 5-of-6 from the line. Cochran added a strong all-around performance with 13 points, four rebounds, and three made threes. Baldwin provided 13 points and six rebounds, and Robinson totaled seven points, three rebounds, and three steals. Wilson contributed six points and three boards, while Lentz and Harper added key minutes on the perimeter.
UT Southern shot 38.6% from the field and 34.8% from three, while Mobile finished at 43.1% overall. The Firehawks forced 12 turnovers and scored 17 points off them but were outrebounded 35–26 in the matchup.
Team Stats by Half
| Team |
1st Half FG% |
2nd Half FG% |
1st Half Points |
2nd Half Points |
Total |
| UT Southern |
33.3% |
43.3% |
22 |
39 |
61 |
| Mobile |
33.3% |
53.6% |
32 |
38 |
70 |
Game Comparison
| Category |
UT Southern |
Mobile |
| Field Goals |
22-57 (38.6%) |
25-58 (43.1%) |
| 3-Point FG |
8-23 (34.8%) |
6-22 (27.3%) |
| Free Throws |
9-15 (60.0%) |
14-18 (77.8%) |
| Rebounds |
26 |
35 |
| Assists |
10 |
6 |
| Turnovers |
9 |
12 |
| Points off Turnovers |
17 |
8 |
| Second-Chance Points |
4 |
4 |
| Points in the Paint |
26 |
32 |
| Bench Points |
16 |
26 |
UT Southern (4–3, 0–1 SSAC) continues conference play on the road this Saturday, November 22, when the Firehawks travel to Montgomery to face Faulkner. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
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