HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Ryan Bowie and Christian Wilson combined to score 45 points, but Southern Miss hit a season-high 14 3-pointers to score an 86-70 win over UTSA on Saturday night at Reed Green Coliseum.
Bowie went 7-of-14 from the field, including four first-half 3-pointers, to lead all scorers with 23 points to go along with five rebounds. It was the 10th time this season that the senior had scored at least 20 points. Wilson added 22 points for the Roadrunners (4-18, 2-7 C-USA), who scored 22 points in the paint.
Meanwhile, Kourtlin Jackson led five players in double figures with 20 points for the Golden Eagles (7-12, 4-4 C-USA). Raheem Watts hit four 3-pointers to add a career-high 19 points as Southern Miss finished the night 14-of-28 from downtown.
The Golden Eagles made a living behind the arc in the first half as the home squad hit 9-of-18 attempts en route to a 35-29 lead at intermission.
Southern Miss started just 1-of-7 from the floor, but hit five straight shots to erase a slim UTSA lead and jump out to a 19-9 cushion. However, Bowie kept the Roadrunners in the contest with three consecutive treys of his own before a Christian Wilson jumper cut the deficit to 26-24 with 4:49 left in the period.
Watts and Quinton Campbell combined to hit three 3-pointers down the stretch to help the home squad outscore the Roadrunners 9-5 and stake claim to a 35-29 halftime advantage.
The Golden Eagles hit two more triples in the opening minutes of the second half before attacking the basket to rebuild their double-digit lead. The advantage grew to as much as 64-47 following another trey from Watts with 8:58 to play, but the UTSA defense clamped down and would not allow a basket for the next seven minutes.
The Roadrunners used their defense to help fuel an 11-2 run during that time to close within 66-58.
Wilson scored four points during the run, which started with his jumper. J.R. Harris added a pair of free throws and found Phillip Jones on the baseline for a dunk before Wilson capped the spurt with another freebie.
However, UTSA could get no closer as the Golden Eagles went 18-of-20 at the charity stripe in the final 2:22 to pull away and close out the 16-point victory.
UTSA will return to the Convocation Center next week for a pair of C-USA games, beginning with a 7 p.m. contest on Thursday, Feb. 4, against Western Kentucky (11-11, 3-6 C-USA).