VALDOSTA, Ga. - Blazer Basketball returns to the Complex this Saturday at 4:00 p.m., as Gulf South Conference competition continues against the rival Wolves of West Georgia.
 
Head Coach Mike Helfer's squad is looking forward to returning to the friendly confines of The Complex after splitting a pair of conference matchups this past weekend on the road. A 73-63 win over Christian Brothers last Saturday was followed up by a heartbreaking 74-71 loss in the final seconds to Union in Jackson, Tenn. on Monday night.
 
As a result, the Blazers moved to 9-4 overall and 5-3 in GSC play. VSU's record places them in a four-way tie for second place with Union, North Alabama, and Christian Brothers, while Delta State, Alabama-Huntsville, and upcoming opponent West Georgia (9-4, 6-2 GSC) each hold a three-way tie at the top position. Essentially, one night of GSC competition could result in a complete realignment of the league's top seven teams.
 
Considering the weight of each conference game this season, Valdosta State hopes to benefit from the recent emergence of Chris Longoria, who has found his stride for Valdosta State in 2016 after returning from a wrist injury just before the holiday break. The senior transfer from Samford scored a combined 34 points on the most recent road trip to lead the Blazers on offense in both games.
 
Defensively, the Blazers will have to contest a Wolves club that leads the league in scoring with an average of 93.3 points per game. In fact, West Georgia comes into Saturday's showdown as the sixth-best scoring team in all of Division II. UWG's success on the offensive end thus far has come as a result of a balanced scoring effort that includes seven different players with an average of 10.0 points or higher per game. The group is led by Steph Branch with 16.2 points per game, and he joins Shannon Fowler (14.5 per game) and Hakeem Alston (14.5 per game) to account for three of the top 11 scorers in the conference.
 
The series between the two programs is a historic one that consists of 124 contests. Valdosta State leads the all-time series with 69 wins against 55 losses. Helfer, who currently stands as the second-winningest coach in Valdosta State basketball history with a record of 193-112, has an even split against the Wolves during his first 10 years at VSU with 10 wins and 10 losses.