VALDOSTA, Ga. - The No. 20-ranked Valdosta State men's basketball team will hit the road to face off against the Montevallo Falcons inside Trustmark Arena this weekend set for Friday, Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. EST and Saturday, Feb. 6 at 3 p.m. EST.
 
VSU (9-3, 9-3 GSC) finished last weekend with a win and a loss over West Georgia, dropping Fridays match 87-79 and bouncing back 71-61 the day after. The Blazers were led in scoring by senior Burke Putnam who set a season-high during Friday's game in points with 25, along with season-highs in field goal attempts (21), three-pointers made and attempted (five for nine), and blocks (one). Senior Imoras Agee recorded his second career double-double during Friday's game and set a new season-high in assists with five.
 
Valdosta State bounced back Saturday evening to help head coach Mike Helfer record his 498^th career win over the span of his 24 years of coaching. Currently, Helfer holds a record of 312-144 at the helm of the Blazers in his 16th year. Helfer hit the 300-win mark as the Blazers head coach last season with an 80-66 win over West Florida on Feb. 27, 2020.
 
After the weekend, the Blazers dropped down to 20 in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II rankings and dropped to 22 in the Division II Sports Information Directors Association (D2SIDA) rankings. In the NABC rankings, Alabama Huntsville is ahead of VSU at 11 while Lee is also ahead at 18. Alabama Huntsville sits at six in the D2SIDA poll while Lee sits at 13.
 
Montevallo enters the week with a 3-2 record overall, dropping its last game on Tuesday, Feb 2, to Shorter 82-21. The Falcons are led by James McNeil who averages 15.4 ppg, going 31 for 71 (.437) from the field with eight threes. Junior Travarus Carroll leads the team in rebounds per game with 7.5 to go with his 13.5 ppg.
 
Led by 18th year head coach Danny Young, the Falcons are shooting .438 from the field while going .315 from deep to average 80.6 ppg, outscoring its opponents by an average of 1.4 points. The Falcons struggle on the glass, averaging 31.8 rpg while giving up 39.6 for a -7.8 margin. Montevallo ranks second in the GSC in points per game, just 4.1 ppg less than the Blazers who rank first with its 84.7 ppg. Montevallo finds itself in the bottom three in both field goal percentage with .438 and field goal percentage defense with .502, tied for worst in the conference.
 
The Blazers have won the last four games against the Falcons, dating back to Jan. 31, 2019 after a 75-70 win at The Complex. VSU is 6-1 against Montevallo with its only loss coming during the 2018-19 season on Jan. 24, 2019 where the Falcons barely squeezed out the win on its home court by a score of 67-65. The Blazers average 88 ppg when they face the Falcons opposed to its 78.3 ppg.
 
Agee, the Blazers leading scorer, ranks first on the GSC leaderboard in total points scored with 215 and third in average points per game with 17.9. Agee also ranks first in field goals made with 80 and minutes on the floor with 389. Behind Agee is Putnam with 171 total points which is good for second among all GSC players while redshirt junior Cam Hamilton rounds out the top three with 162 points.
 
Season tickets are on sale now. Please call 229-333-SEAT for more information on purchasing tickets. Check back with vstateblazers.com for updates on all things Blazer basketball and on all VSU's 12 intercollegiate athletic programs.