VALDOSTA, Ga. - The Valdosta State men's basketball team countered a hot start by the North Alabama Lions with a record-setting offensive performance to claim a 115-94 win and earn a trip to the Gulf South Conference Tournament semifinal round on Saturday in Birmingham, Ala.

North Alabama strung together four three pointers around a dunk within the first three minutes of the game to take a 14-7 lead at the 17:28 mark. Beau Justice fired back, however, with one of his eight three pointers on the night to pull the Blazers back to within four and spark a 32-9 run over the next ten minutes for a 39-23 lead.

The Blazers continued to pour in points en route to the conclusion of the first half, during which GSC Player of the Year Jeremiah Hill scored 22 points and dished out nine assists. As a team, the Blazers connected on 13-of-20 attempts from beyond the arc and hit 20-of-34 from the field for a total of 59 first half points. Alternatively, the Lions were held to just 36 points in the opening period.

Valdosta State continued to light it up in the second half with 19 more field goals, nine of which were from beyond the arc. As a result, the Blazers hit 22 total three pointers to eclipse a previous school record of 21, set by the team in the final regular season game against West Florida in 2014-15. Additionally, the Blazers went on to rack up 115 total points in the game, which set a new mark for total points by a team in a GSC Tournament matchup. Prior to Tuesday night, the previous record stood at 111, a number that Delta State tallied in 1999.

Hill led the way with 28 points, while Justice racked up 26. In addition, Josh Lemons and Carlos Beverly delivered 13 and 11 points respectively, and Jimmy Kodet caught fire in the closing minutes of the contest to bury four three pointers in less than a two-minute span. The sharpshooting finish by Kodet led to 15 points to complement seven strong rebounds.

The 10 assists by Hill helped lead the senior to his third double-double of the season and his first with the help of a double-digit assist total.

The Blazers improved to 25-4 on the year with the victory, and the Lions saw their season come to an end at 14-15.

The top-ranked Blazers will square off against No. 4 Christian Brothers at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 4th at Pete Hannah Center in Birmingham, Ala.

For more on the GSC Tournament semifinal and final rounds, CLICK HERE.