KENNESAW, Ga. - IUPUI was primed and positioned for an important win in the consolation round of the 2015 Legends Classic, but faltered late as South Alabama closed the game with a 14-0 run to capture a 78-68 win inside the barren KSU Convocation Center. Junior Darell Combs led the Jaguars with 18 points and freshman T.J. Henderson added 14 points in his first career start. 

Ken Williams led four South Alabama (2-3) players in double-digits with 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting and Georgi Boyanov added 17 points and nine boards for the Jaguars. Don MuepoKelly contributed 11 points and six caroms and Barrington Stevens tallied 10. 

IUPUI (2-4) shot just 34.8 percent from the field and was just 5-of-22 (22.7 percent) from deep while South Alabama knocked down 51 percent overall. 

"We didn't shoot it well again today and our energy level just wasn't very good," IUPUI Head Coach Jason Gardner said. "That's disappointing because that's something we can control. As poorly as we played, we were still in a spot to get the win and just didn't finish very well at all. We missed a lot of shots - open shots - that we usually knock down."

South Alabama made eight of its first 10 field goal attempts and held the lead virtually the entire first half. The other Jaguars built a nine-point lead with 4:43 left before the break after Shaq Calhoun made three free throws and Williams rattled in a trey on USA's next possession. However, IUPUI closed the half well, getting a trey as the shot clock expired from Jordan Pickett and layups from Nick Osborne and Aaron Brennan to cut the lead down to 39-37 at the half. 

IUPUI scored the first three points of the second half, all from the foul line, beginning a see-saw second stanza. The lead grew to 50-46 with 14:41 left when freshman Evan Hall completed a three-point play, but USA countered with nine straight points, capped by a Taishaun Johnson runner. 

IUPUI once again built a four-point lead, this time getting five points in succession capped by a pair of Combs free throws with 6:17 to play. The two sides then traded baskets, capped by a Matt O'Leary drive from the right side, putting the Jaguars ahead 68-64 with 5:18 to play. However, it'd be the Jaguars' final points of the night as South Alabama scored the next 14 to claim a 10-point win. 

Boyanov cut IUPUI's lead to two with a layup and then capped a possession that included two offensive rebounds by flipping in a three from near the top of the key, giving USA a 69-68 lead. 

IUPUI finished the game with nine straight empty trips, missing seven shots and turning the ball over twice. 

"We didn't get baskets when we needed them," Gardner said. "We'd get a little momentum, but then we'd give up an offensive board or miss an open shot and not keep the momentum going.

"I thought we were a little selfish and just didn't do a good job of finding the open man and sharing the basketball."

IUPUI was credited with a season-low six assists on 23 field goals while South Alabama assisted on half of their 26 makes. 

Both Hall and Pickett scored nine points off the IUPUI bench and Osborne contributed six points and eight rebounds. The Jaguars' starting front line of O'Leary and Osborne struggled shooting the basketball on Tuesday, hitting a combined 5-of-21 shots and 0-of-6 from three-point range. 

IUPUI will stay in Georgia for the Thanksgiving holiday, preparing for a Friday game with Georgia State. That contest will be seen on ESPN3 at 7:00 p.m. and will be the second-meeting between IUPUI and former Head Coach Ron Hunter. Hunter helped GSU to an NCAA Tournament victory over Baylor a season ago and returns much of his roster from last year.