VALDOSTA, Ga. – A second half surge led the Alabama-Huntsville Chargers to an 82-72 win over the Valdosta State men's basketball team on Monday night in Gulf South Conference action in Valdosta, Ga.
After a series of lead changes in the early minutes of the contest, the Blazers used a 44.1 percent shooting effort from the field in the first half to take a nine-point, 42-31 lead into intermission.
Beau Justice fueled the squad's first half success with two three-balls and a trio of free throws for a total of nine points, while
Justin Simon got off to a strong start with eight first half points and four rebounds.
The second half proved to be the difference for the Chargers, however. UAH could do no wrong on offense, and with the help of three different players who reached double-digit figures in the second-half scoring column, the Chargers shot 58.1 percent (18-of-31) from the field and 45.5 percent (5-of-11) from the three point line.
Despite Alabama-Huntsville's impressive second half shooting display, Valdosta State managed to hold the Chargers at bay and retain their lead for the first 10 minutes of the second half. UAH took a 59-58 lead at the 9:31 mark, however, thanks to a three-pointer by Seab Webster, and the Chargers used a five-minute long, 14-5 run to extend their lead out of VSU's reach.
Troy Saxton led the way for the Chargers with 20 points on a near perfect 8-of-9 night from the field. Saxton's performance complemented four other UAH players, who each reached double-digits in the scoring column on the night and nullified the performances of
Jeremiah Hill, Justice, and Simon, who delivered 15, 13, and 12 points in the game, respectively. Justice and Simon both came close to double-doubles with eight rebounds each.
With the loss, Valdosta State saw a two-game winning streak come to an end and fell to 8-3 overall, 3-2 in GSC action. Alabama-Huntsville improved to 8-3 overall and 4-1 against league opponents.
Next up for VSU, it's another GSC showdown, as the team squares off against Lee University on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. EST in Cleveland, Tenn.
