MONTEVALLO, Ala. – The Valdosta State men's basketball team fell 79-73 Saturday evening behind a team-high 16 points from junior guard Jacolbey Owens.
Owens ended the game going 5 of 11 from the field and 3 of 4 from outside the arc and picked up three rebounds, seven assists and one block in 38 minutes of action.
The Blazers fell to 11-12 on the year and 7-9 in the Gulf South Conference while the Falcons improved to 12-13 on the year and 9-8 in conference play.
MU's James McNeil started the game off with a pair of three-pointers to give the Falcons an early lead, but the Blazers' defense held strong to tie the game 6-6 from a trey and pull-up jumper by Owens and a free throw from junior forward Michael Cole.
Cole ended his evening with 12 points, three assists, and was just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds.
The Falcons went on a small 5-0 run to push their lead to 26-18 with 6:31 left in the first half, but junior guard Cam Hamilton's driving layup ended the scoring drought for the Blazers.
Junior forward Maurice Gordon sent VSU into the locker room with a three-pointer, as the Blazers trailed 36-31 after 20 minutes of action. VSU shot 40% from the field, going 12 of 30 from the floor and 5 of 12 from outside the arc. The Blazers forced MU into only two turnovers and put up seven points off turnovers in addition to 12 second-chance points.
In the second half, Owens put up a three-pointer from sophomore guard Cam Selders 55 seconds in to put the Blazers back within two, 36-34. After a spell of coast-to-coast action, Cole put up a floating jumper and a layup to bring the score to 59-55 with 8:49 left in the game.
An open layup from junior forward Mohamed Fofana but the Blazers within one, and a foul after the play brought Fofana to the line where he tied the game at 59.
Fofana finished the game with seven points, eight rebounds, two assists, and a block.
Gordon sparked a 5-0 lead with 4:58 to play with a three-pointer, and an alley-oop dunk to give the Blazers their first lead of the game, 66-65. Montevallo responded with a 5-0 run of their own to take back the lead, 70-66 with 3:20 seconds.
Hamilton put up another trey with three seconds in the game, but Montevallo came up with the win at home 79-73 after a pair of free throws by Braxton Bertolette.
For the game, the Blazers had a 46.7% FG percentage, going 28 of 60 from the field and 10 of 24 from outside the arc. The Blazers tied the game four times and forced Montevallo into eight turnovers. For the Falcons, the offense was led by Bertolette, who put up 21 points. Aaris-Monte Bonds had a team-high 10 rebounds, along with 16 points for a double-double.
The Blazers return to the Complex on Feb. 17 as they host Lee at 8 p.m. and host Shorter on Feb. 19 at 4 p.m. for the final two regular-season home games.
