MOBILE, Ala. - Despite a 19-point, seven-rebound effort from senior forward Kaetlyn Murdoch (Temple, Texas), the Pioneers fell to the South Alabama Jaguars 57-51 Saturday afternoon at the Mitchell Center.

Junior point guard Emiko Smith (Los Angeles, Calif.) tallied 14 points, six assists and three rebounds, while going 6-for-7 from the line. The loss drops the Pioneers to 10-8 overall and 2-2 in the Sun Belt Conference, while USA improves to 9-6 and 1-2 in the SBC.

"This was a tough one all around for us," said head coach Erik Johnson. "We had Morgan returning for the first time in two games, combined with Kaetlyn going down early, it was rough from the start. Despite the uncontrollable circumstances, we still were in this game until the very end and fought hard. I can't be any more proud of my team."

Denver went on a 7-3 run to begin the game, with Murdoch scoring five of her game-high 19 points in that span. South Alabama held the Pioneers scoreless the final 6:30 to end the half, as Denver managed to take a 21-19 lead going into the intermission.

A high-scoring second half saw the Pioneers shoot 45.5 percent (10-of-22) from the field, including 2-for-4 (50.0 percent) from three-point range. Smith hit a three to tie the game at 44-44 with 4:54 remaining in regulation, but the Jaguars pulled away with a 12-4 run in the final 4:33.

Denver returns home Sunday, Jan. 15, to take on the Western Kentucky Lady Toppers at 3:30 p.m. MT. Fans can catch the action live on Pioneer Vision, as well as follow the game on CoverItLive and Live Stats, all via DenverPioneers.com.

Visit DenverPioneers.com for the most comprehensive coverage of Denver women's basketball, as well as all of DU's 17 athletic programs.

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