LAKELAND, Fla. ­­– Three Blazers scored in double figures as the Valdosta State men's basketball team opened the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic and the 2022-2023 season with a 108-80 loss to No. 6 Lincoln Memorial Saturday afternoon in Lakeland, Fla. The Blazers fell to 0-1 on the young season, while the Railsplitters improved to 1-0.  

The Blazers finished the game going 29 of 74 from the field and 11 of 31 from beyond the arc for a 39.2 field-goal percentage and a 35.5 three-point percentage. The Blazers also added 32 rebounds, including eight offensive, 16 assists, three blocks and eight steals.  

Sophomore forward Caden Boser recorded 20 points in addition to three assists, five rebounds, a block and a steal to earn Guardian Bank Player of the Game. Redshirt senior guard Cam Hamilton led the offense with a team-high 22 points, going 7 of 15 from the field and 5 of 9 from beyond the arc. He also added four rebounds, two thefts and an assist. Senior forward Mohamed Fofana ended the game with a team-high five free throws out of six attempts in addition to going 7 of 13 from the field and 1 of 2 from beyond the arc for 20 points, four rebounds and an assist.  

For the Railsplitters, LMU went 41 of 77 from the field for a 53.2 clip, 15 of 37 from beyond the arc for a 40.5 three-point percentage and added six steals, five blocks, 31 assists and 56 rebounds. Chase Rankin finished the game with a double-double recording 14 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds. Jordan Guest led the offense with 17 points, going 5 of 14 from the field and 2 of 8 from beyond the arc while Jordan Walters had a team-high 12 rebounds and a team-high three blocks.  

The Blazers opened the game with an easy layup from Boser. After the shot, Hamilton came up with a huge trey to give Valdosta its first lead of the game, 5-2. The Railsplitters then went on a 11-0 run to regain the lead at 13-5. Following a made free-throw from senior forward Maurice Gordon, LMU again went on an 13-0 run to push its lead to 24-6 with 12:41 left in the first 20 minutes.  

Later in the half, Boser recorded another layup to bring VSU within 19, 31-12, and back-to-back three-pointers from graduate guard Ryan Black and Boser allowed the Blazers to battle back to 40-24 with 4:45 left in the half. 

The Blazers ended the first half with another driving layup from Boser, who also capitalized on the extra point, and Fofana followed the play with a three-pointer to bring VSU to the locker room trailing 52-32.  

VSU ended the half going 11 of 33 from the field for a 33.3 field-goal percentage and 4-12 from beyond the arc for a 33.3 three-point percentage. The Blazers recorded 18 rebounds including five offensive rebounds, three thefts, and went 6 of 12 from the free-throw line for a 50 percent free-throw percentage. 

Fofana and Boser each went 4 of 7 from the field in the first half while Fofana added a three-pointer and three rebounds through nine minutes of action while Boser also added a three-pointer, a free-throw, three rebounds and an assist through 17 minutes. Black recorded one field goal and a three-pointer in addition to three rebounds and Gordon added a field goal and was perfect from beyond the arc, 1-1.  

Lincoln Memorial went into the locker room shooting 54.1 percent, going 20 of 37 from the field and 6 of 15 from beyond the arc. In addition, the Railsplitters also added 25 rebounds, 13 assists, four blocks and 13 assists. Jordan Guest led the offense with 13 points, going 4 of 8 from the field and 2 of 4 from beyond the arc, while Jordan Walters had a team-high nine rebounds. Chase Rankin dropped six dimes to lead the team and Me'Keell Burries led the team with two thefts.  

In the second half, Lincoln Memorial got seven quick points off before Fofana capitalized on a pull-up jumper. Hamilton followed the play up a minute later with a deep three-pointer to cut LMU's lead to 59-37. Later in the half, the Blazers went on a 6-0 run sparked by a layup courtesy of Gordon to cut the deficit to 80-52 with 9:48 left in the game.  

Deep into the half, a three-pointer from Hamilton and a driving layup from Fofana allowed the Blazers to cut the deficit to 103-78, but a final three-pointer and a dunk from the Railsplitters allowed LMU to take the game 108-80.  

VSU ended the second half shooting 43.9 percent from the field and 36.84 beyond the arc while Lincoln Memorial shot 21 of 40 from the field for a 52.50 clip and 9 of 22 from beyond the arc for a 40.9 three-point percentage. Hamilton led the offense in the second half, recording 14 points, while Fofana added 11, going 5 of 6 from the free-throw line. Boser and Owens each dropped two dimes while Owens added two thefts and Boser added one.  

The Blazers will be back in action on Sunday, taking on Hillsdale College at 3:30 p.m. to round out the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic.  

For all updates on Blazer hoops, visit vstateblazers.com or follow Valdosta State Athletics on social media.