VALDOSTA, Ga. – The No. 12 Valdosta State men's basketball team returns home for the final two regular season games at The Complex this week versus Montevallo and West Alabama.  The Blazers own a Gulf South Conference-best 13-game winning streak heading into the games this week.
 
VSU will battle Montevallo on Thursday at 8 p.m. and then face West Alabama on Saturday at 4 p.m. for Senior Day.  Prior to Saturday's game, the Blazers will honor four seniors playing in their final regular season home games.  The 2020 Senior Class includes; Tyler Edwards, Clay Guillozet, Darrell Jones and Bryce Smith, all have been huge contributors to the program during their time playing for the red and black.  The class has been a part of three-straight Gulf South Conference regular season titles, won 20 or more games in three-straight seasons and received berths into the NCAA postseason for three-straight years since they came on campus.   
 
The games will be broadcast on 92.1 WDDQ FM with Mike Chason having the call.  Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming, ticket information and more at vstateblazers.com on the men's basketball schedule.  Check back following the games for complete recaps and stats of each game.
 
VSU moved up one spot in the latest National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Top 25 this week from 13^th to 12^th.  The Blazers are the only GSC team ranked in the poll, while Alabama Huntsville and Lee are among others receiving votes.  In the region, Florida Southern is fifth in the poll, while Nova Southeastern is tenth.  VSU is 11^th in the D2SIDA Top 25 this week.  The 13-game winning streak is the eighth-longest current streak in NCAA Division II, as Lincoln Memorial has won 25-straight to lead the way.  
 
The first NCAA Region Rankings are expected to be released Wednesday afternoon.  There will be three public rankings leading up to the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Selection Show, streamed live on NCAA.com in the evening on Mar. 8.  Check back with vstateblazers.com for more information on the rankings each Wednesday leading up to Selection Sunday.  
 
The Blazers extended the winning streak to 13 games with a 79-63 win at Mississippi College and a 72-67 win at Delta State last week.  Jones dropped 24 points and scored 10 of the final 14 points for the Blazers in the win at Delta State, while Smith averaged 14 points in two games and 6.5 rebounds per game.  Sophomore Imoras Agee averaged 13.5 points per game and shot 11 of 24 from the field (.458) with three triples and Guillozet averaged 13.5 points and a team-best 8.0 rebounds per game.  VSU shot .439 from the field on 54 of 123, while it was 12 of 39 from beyond the arc (.308) and 31 of 50 from the line (.620).  The Blazers averaged 39 rebounds per game and 75.5 points per game, while holding the opposition to 65.0 points per game.
 
VSU has clinched a berth in the upcoming Gulf South Conference Championship and has a chance to host a first-round playoff game, Tues., Mar. 3, if it finishes in the top four of the league standings at the conclusion of the regular season.  Right now, VSU holds a half game lead over Lee for the top spot in the standings with four games to play.  The winners of the four campus site games in the first round of the conference tournament on Mar. 3 will advance to the semifinal and final rounds of the GSC Championship, Mar. 7-8 in Birmingham, Ala., at the Pete Hanna Center.  
 
Following VSU and Lee in the standings are West Alabama at 12-5, Alabama Huntsville (11-5) and Union is 11-6 as all five have clinched berths in the postseason conference tournament.  West Florida sits sixth at 10-8, followed by a tie for seventh between Auburn Montgomery and Montevallo at 8-8.  Christian Brothers sits just outside the top eight at 7-10. 
 
Montevallo enters the week with a 12-12 record overall and an 8-8 mark in league play.  UM snapped an eight-game skid with a 76-74 win over Christian Brothers on Saturday.  VSU handed Montevallo a 68-62 loss on Feb. 1 in Montevallo, Ala. 
 
The Falcons are led by Wade Lowman at 15.6 points per game and 7.1 rebounds per game.  Lowman is 136 of 231 from the field for a .589 average, while he is a team-high 87 of 144 from the line.  Lowman has a team-high 31 steals and 30 blocks.  Jonas Parker is second in scoring at 15.2 points per game and 6.0 rebounds per game.  Parker is a team-best in free throw percentage at 78 of 93 for a .839 average.  Cedric Jackson is third in scoring at 12.0 points per game and leads the team from beyond the arc with 60 triples.  Xavier Malcom is fourth in scoring at 11.8 points per game and leads the team with 67 assists.  
 
As a team, the Falcons are shooting .444 from the field on 584 of 1314, while they are 150 of 457 (.328) from beyond the arc and 341 of 466 from the line (.732).  UM is averaging 69.1 points per game and 33.1 rebounds per game, while allowing 71.2 points per game and 33.6 rebounds per game. 
 
In the first meeting, Guillozet paced the Blazers with a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds, leading three Blazers in double figures.  Smith had a team-high 17 points, while Jones added 13 points.  Jones put the Blazers up 64-60 with 51 seconds left and added two free throws for a 66-62 lead with 28 seconds left.  UM had three good looks from distance, but none fell as Agee hit two tosses for the final margin of 68-62.  
 
UWA enters winners of its last two games and five of six.  The Tigers are 19-6 overall and 12-5 in league play.  UWA will play at West Georgia on Thursday, before visiting Valdosta on Saturday.  Last week, UWA posted a 71-69 victory over Christian Brothers and then won 76-59 over Union.  
 
For the season, VSU is shooting .475 from the field for 20^th nationally and first in the GSC.  The Blazers are averaging 89.4 points per game for first in the league and 13^th nationally.  VSU averaging 41.7 rebounds per game for 11^thnationally and first in the league.  The Blazers are first in the league in offensive rebounds per game (12.74) for 35^thnationally and are 12^th nationally in defensive rebounds at 28.9 per game.  VSU has done a great job of taking care of the basketball this season as it is 15^th nationally in turnover margin at 4.1, while it is first in the GSC in turnovers forced (16.00) and turnovers per game (11.9).  
 
Individually, Guillozet is 30^th nationally and first in the league in offensive rebounds per game at 3.22, while he is third in the league and 52^nd nationally in total rebounds per game at 8.6.  His 139 field goals made is good for third in the league and he is fifth in the league in field goal percentage at a .517 clip.  Jones leads the team in scoring at 15.8 points per game for fifth in the league, leading five starters in double figures.  
 
During the 13-game winning streak, the Blazers are averaging 91.1 points per game and shooting .485 from the field on 446 of 919.  VSU is 101 of 266 from range and are 191 of 284 from the line.  The Blazers are averaging 42.1 rebounds per game, while holding teams to a 39.8 clip on the boards and 73.1 points per game.  Teams are shooting just .404 from the field against the Blazers during the run.  VSU has scored over 100 points three times, while scoring 90-99 points an additional five times.  The Blazers are outscoring the opposition by 18 points during the run.  
 
All five starters are averaging double figures during the run as Jones leads the way at 15.8 points per game.  He is 72 of 134 from the field (.537), while going 37 of 46 from the line (.804).  Guillozet is third in scoring at 13.5 points, while he leads the team averaging 9.0 rebounds per game.  
 
VSU won a big game at UWA on Jan. 4, as it posted a 69-59 victory highlighted by a 21-3 run to start the second half after the Blazers led 32-30 at intermission.  Guillozet eclipsed 1,000 career points and 500 career rebounds as a member of the Blazers in the game.  Jones had a team-high 19 points leading four players in double figures.  Guillozet became the 24^th player in VSU men's basketball history to achieve 1,000 career points at the school. 
 
Following the two games this week, VSU closes the regular season next week at West Florida and Auburn Montgomery.