MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama women's basketball team (21-12) defeated Furman (18-14), 54-53, in a game that came down to the wire, to advance to the Women's Basketball Invitational Final Four Monday at the Mitchell Center.

With the Jags up by three and 2:32 to go, the Paladins went on a 7-0 run to lead by four with 51 ticks on the clock. Chyna Ellis hit a three-pointer and got fouled 41 seconds, but missed the free-throw to tie the game on the and-one opportunity on the Jags next possession to pull within one.

Furman took the ball down the court, but committed a shot-clock violation to give South Alabama an opportunity to take the lead with 11 seconds left. After a Paladin foul, Antoinette Lewis drove to the hoop off an inbounds play and made a layup to put the Jags up by one with five ticks on the clock. The Jags held up on the defensive end to seal the game as time expired.

Ellis led USA with 17 points and came up one rebound short of a double-double with nine. The senior went 5-of-8 from behind-the-arc and went 2-for-3 from the free-throw line, while rejecting a pair of shots and recording two takeaways.

Savannah Jones was the only other Jag to score 10 or more points collecting 12 on a 5-of-12 shooting night, including 2-for-6 on three-point attempts. Jones also brought down six rebounds in the victory.

Lewis scored six of her seven points in the fourth quarter, while rejecting a team-high three shots. Genesis Perrymond led the team with six assists, while Shaforia Kines dished out five helpers.

Celena Taborn led a trio of Paladins in double-digits with 18 points on a 9-of-15 shooting night. DeAnneisha Jackson brought down 15 of Furman's 44 rebounds.

GAME FACTS
- The Jags trailed the Paladins at the end of the first quarter, 12-10.
- USA held Furman scoreless for over five minutes in the middle of the opening frame.
- South Alabama came rolling back in the second outscoring Furman 20-13 and took a five-point lead into halftime.
- The Jags extended their lead to a game-high eight points on a 5-0 run, culminated by a Kines layup with 4:21 left in the third.
- The Paladins cut into the eight-point lead by answering with a 9-2 run, including a three at the buzzer, to end the third quarter.
- Neither team led by more than three in the final quarter, but the Jags scored the final five points of the game to seal the win.
- Furman made 23 baskets to USA's 20.
- South Alabama was outrebounded 44-38.
- The Jags scored 14 points off 11 Paladin turnovers, while just committing eight turnovers and only allowing six points off its giveaways.
- USA had 16 assists on its 20 made field-goals.
- South Alabama went 6-for-11 at the charity-stripe, while Furman went 0-for-3.

NOTES
- Tonight was the Jags' fourth postseason victory in program history and they are 4-4 all-time in postseason games.
- Jones has 67 made three-pointers this season, two away from tying for third most in a season in program history.
- South Alabama has 535 assists this season, the most since the 1989-90 team had 619 helpers.
- USA has 243 blocks, a program record for a season, to lead the NCAA.
- Ellis has had 10 or more points in 13 of the last 10 games.
- Jones has collected at least 10 points in five of her last seven games.
- Lewis has rejected three shots in a game seven times this season.

THEY SAID IT
USA head coach Terry Fowler
Opening statement: "First of all, I want to thank all the fans, students, the city of Mobile, and everybody who came out and supported us in these two games in the WBI. We couldn't have pulled this one out tonight without the crowd's support. At the end of the game, they played a big hand in that. Furman was rolling. We knew they've got multiple actions on the offensive end of the floor, and you've got to continue to guard them. Great post up on the inside, so they make it difficult. You've got to guard them on the inside and outside. We came out and played pretty good defense most of the night and were able to finish at the end on both ends of the floor. This time of year, you're just trying to survive and advance, so we're moving on."

On the sense of calmness: "It started at App State. We played a close game in overtime. The Louisiana game here was a three-point game. Then the two games we had in the Georgias, and then the Troy game. We'd been building on that, and it's funny because we ended yesterday's practice with special situations, trying to make sure we know what we're doing. We came out and executed. We executed a foul at the end. We executed the offensive play. We actually had a different play call, and they fouled us, then we went to the second play we had called. We practiced it, so there's no reason we shouldn't stay calm, because we're prepared for the situation."

On the WBI experience: "It's just great. It's great that our upperclassmen get to put the uniform on again. The other thing is, now our younger players have experienced this, so they want more. Having this experience versus having the season end right after the conference tournament is a huge boost for our current team, and it's a huge boost in recruiting as well."

Freshman F Antoinette Lewis
Lewis on game winner: "We ran a Zone 1, which is a post-up play, and Chyna read it well. They crowded in on her, and they closed out hard on me. I was taught to drive along close outs, so I trusted myself, and I did it. I thought it was flirting around with the rim a little too much for me, but it fell in, and I was happy, and my team was happy, and all was well."

On the sense of calmness: "We've been in these types of games a lot lately, and we do it all the time in practice where we have five seconds and we're down two or down three, so we practice it over and over. When it comes to the game, we know how to handle these situations."

Senior C Chyna Ellis
On the sense of calmness: "We want to win, and we know that we've got to stay composed and stay calm under situations that we know so well. We've been in this situation in five or six of the last seven games, so we knew that no matter what, we can still win."

On the three-pointer she was fouled on: "I'd been hitting them all night, and I've been trusting my shot and believing that I put in the work to make the shot. I just shot it. I was calm about it, and every shot you put up has a chance to go in. It went in, and she fouled me. Unfortunately, I didn't make the free-throw, but that came in big in the last play."

On the crowd impact: "The crowd brought energy and kept us pumped and kept us going and gave us hope that we can win."

UP NEXT
The Jaguars will be on the road for their WBI Final Four matchup and will face the winner of Yale and Binghamton, who play tomorrow (Mar. 20) at 6 p.m. (C.T.). If Yale wins, the Jags will play on Mar. 23 in New Haven, Conn., and if Binghamton prevails, the matchup will be on Mar. 24 in Vestal, N.Y. Tip time for Mar. 23 would be 6 p.m. (C.T.) while the game in Mar. 24 would start at 2 p.m. (C.T.).