VALDOSTA, Ga. – In a game of big runs by both teams, the Valdosta State men's basketball team held on for an 88-83 victory over visiting Palm Beach Atlantic Thursday evening at The Complex.
The Blazers held an 80-62 lead with 4:11 to play in the game as PBA rallied to end the game with a 21-8 run, including a run of 12-1 pulling within 81-74 with 2:21 to play. During the run, PBA's Marcus Montalvo made six-straight free throws as he was fouled on a three-point attempt and a technical foul on the Blazers.
Blazer senior Jacolbey Owens scored the first field goal for the Blazers since the 4:11 mark with a layup and 1:10 to play. PBA's Kolbe Ash pulled the Sailfish within two at 83-81 with 25 seconds to play. PBA quickly fouled and Owens hit one of two free throws, but PBA was called for a foul on Owens' second attempts as senior Mohamed Fofana buried two more tosses for an 86-81 score. Two free from PBA's Will Lee pulled the Sailfish within 86-83 and two more tosses by the Blazers pushed the lead to 88-83 for the final margin.
VSU improved to 8-5 on the year and heads into Christmas holiday, while PBA fell to 4-5. Following the break, VSU travels to Auburn Montgomery and Montevallo on Dec. 31 and Jan. 2, respectively, before returning home to host Alabama Huntsville on Jan. 5 and West Alabama on Jan. 7 at The Complex.
For the game, VSU shot 55.9 percent from the field on 33 of 59 from the floor, while it was 7 of 23 from deep and 15 of 21 from the line. Owens finished with a game-high 21 points, including 14 in the second half, on 8 of 11 from the field, 1 of 2 from deep and four free throws. Sophomore Caden Boser, who was named the Guardian Bank Blazer Player of the Game, finished with 16 points on 7 of 11 from the field and 2 of 5 from beyond the arc. Fofana finished with 13 points off the bench on 4 of 6 from the field with a triple and 4 of 4 from the line, while senior Maurice Gordon added ten points.
PBA had five players in double figures led by 19 points and eight rebounds from Jalen Cooper, while Montalvo finished with 11 points and eight rebounds. The Sailfish shot 45.2 percent for the game on 28 of 62, while they were 7 of 25 from deep and 20 of 22 from the line – all free throws came in the second half.
The Blazers jumped out to an early 11-5 lead capped with a senior Cam Hamilton trey, but PBA roared back to tie the game at 11 with six-straight points with 15:15 left in the first half. A trey from graduate student Ryan Black sparked a 13-0 run for the Blazers over the next four minutes for a 24-11 lead with 10:28 to play in the half.
PBA ended the run with a jumper and a triple from Bryce Laskey for a 24-16 score, but VSU stretched the lead back out as Gordon nailed one from deep. A driving layup from Ryan Claflin pulled the Sailfish within 29-23 with 7:32 to play, but Boser answered at the other end. Boser then drained one from downtown for a 34-25 lead with six minutes left, but another run by PBA cut the deficit to 34-30 on a triple from Cooper with 4:11 remaining in the half. Owens answered right back with three points sparking a half-ending 14-0 run for a 48-30 lead for VSU at the break.
For the half, the Blazers shot 54.8 percent from the field on 17 of 31, while they were 6 of 16 from deep and a perfect 8 of 8 from the line. Boser had a team-high ten points for VSU as the team held an 11-2 lead in points off turnovers, forcing PBA into nine miscues.
The Sailfish went 13 of 32 from the field for 40.6 percent, while they were 4 of 15 from deep and didn't attempt a free throw in the half. VSU held a 20-13 lead in rebounding for the half as Cooper led the team with seven points.
PBA answered the Blazer run from the end of the first half with a run of its own to begin the second, scoring ten of the first 13 points cutting the margin to 51-40 with 16:17 left and a timeout by the Blazers. Out of the break, Blazer junior Mike Isler scored the next six points for VSU pushing the lead to 57-44 with 14:06 to play.
The Sailfish continued to hang tough and trimmed the deficit to eight at 60-52 with a triple from Lasky and 11:34 to play and then down to seven at 62-55 on a bucket from Claflin, but a layup from Fofana and a bucket from Boser pushed the lead back to double-digits at 66-55 with 8:20 to play.
Less than a minute later, the Blazers began another huge run beginning with a jumper from Owens for a 70-58 lead as VSU scored 12 of the next 16 points for an 80-62 lead with 4:11 to play. Once again, the Sailfish responded with a run to pull within two in the closing seconds of the game, 83-81, but five free throws from the Blazers gave VSU the 88-83 win.
