VALDOSTA, Ga. – Jimmy Kodet flushed home a two-handed put-back dunk with less than one second remaining to give No. 24 Valdosta State their 10^th consecutive win, a 100-98, double overtime victory over the Mississippi College Choctaws in Gulf South Conference play on Thursday night in Clinton, Miss.
 
Valdosta State got off to a slow start in the opening minutes of the game, scoring just two points during the first five-plus minutes of the contest. The Blazers recovered in fine fashion, however, after Damian Young buried a three pointer at the 14:31 mark to spark a 43-point onslaught over the course of the remainder of the first half.
 
Young's effort played a huge role in VSU's first-half success, as the senior poured in 15 of the Blazers' 26 bench points in the opening period. Kodet teamed up with Carlos Beverly and Tim Dal Bon to account for 5, 4, and 2 points, respectively. Combined with Young, the Valdosta State reserves help ignite the Blazer offense for a 45-37 lead.
 
After trailing for the first 16 minutes of the second half, the Choctaws used a Stacey Mack layup at the 3:12 mark, which sparked a 13-6 run over the course of the next three minutes and trimmed their deficit to 75-78 with four seconds to play in regulation. Deondre Haynes, who scored a team-high 28 points in the game, went to the free throw line and hit the first shot, before he purposely missed the second shot to try and give MC an offensive rebound opportunity. The gamble worked, as Haynes pulled down his own rebound and forced overtime with a last second, game tying layup.
 
The outcome looked bleak for VSU after the first two minutes of first overtime period, but Jeremiah Hill hit three shots from beyond the arc and scored 12 of his career-high 35 points in the final three minutes of the frame to help the Blazers overcome a six-point deficit and force an additional overtime period.
 
In the deciding frame, the two teams traded buckets throughout before VSU earned an opportunity for the last shot, as the final seconds ticked away. Hill prepared to take the final shot, and fired from long range with fewer than five seconds to play. The shot went left, but a heads-up play by Kodet put him in position to grab the miss out of the air and slam it home for the win.
 
The victory marked Helfer's 100^th career win against GSC opponents, and Valdosta State secured their position as the league-leaders with an 18-3 record overall, 13-2 in GSC action. Meanwhile, the Choctaws fell to 4-14 overall and 1-13 in league play.
 
 
Valdosta State will next face Delta State on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. in Cleveland, Miss. Full coverage will be available right here at www.vstateblazers.com.