Box Score  
 
VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State men's basketball team snapped a four-game skid with an 83-65 victory Thursday evening over visiting Shorter University at The Complex.  Blazer graduate student LaTrell Tate led five players in double figures with 19 points, while graduate student Jay Rucker tallied his first double-double of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds.  
 
The Blazers improved to 7-10 overall and 4-9 in Gulf South Conference play, while Shorter fell to 3-14 overall and 1-12 in GSC play as both teams opened the second half of the conference slate.  Tate went 8 of 13 from the field and 3 of 5 from beyond the arc, while Rucker was 7 of 9 from the field, 1 of 3 from beyond the arc and 3 of 4 from the line, along with the 11 rebounds.  Junior Braxton Williams finished with 15 points, including 7 of 8 from the line, while senior Lee Flenor added 14 points and senior Mike Isler chipped in 12.  
 
For the game, the Blazers shot an even 50 percent on 29 of 58 from the field, while the team was 6 of 21 from beyond the arc and 19 of 29 from the line.  Shorter went 23 of 55 from the field, while the Hawks were 5 of 17 from distance and 14 of 20 from the line.  VSU held a 39-26 lead in rebounding for the contest.  The Blazers used a strong second half to pull away as they were 15 of 24 from the field in the final stanza, while Shorter was 11 of 25.  The Hawks were led by 14 points from Brent Bowman and Landon Tillman, while Krei Kyncy added 10 points.  
 
A 3-pointer from Rucker gave VSU a 14-13 lead with 11:46 left in the first half as the Blazers used a 10-0 run for a 21-13 lead with 8:50 to play in the half, highlighted by a pair of Williams 3-pointers.  SU tripped the deficit to 23-18 with 5:07 to play, but the Blazers pushed the lead back to eight at 29-21 with 3:02 to play on a triple from Tate.  The Hawks used a triple from Krei Kyncy pulling within 36-30 with 44 seconds remaining and Blazer junior JC Clausi ended the half with a bucket for a 38-30 lead at the break.
 
For the half, VSU was 14 of 34 from the field for a 41.2 clip, while Shorter was 12 of 30 for a 40.0 average.   The Blazers went 5 of 17 from beyond the arc and 5 of 7 from the line, while the Hawks were 2 of 8 from distance and 4 of 8 from the line.  VSU held a 25-13 lead in rebounding.
 
The second half saw Rucker open with a dunk for his ninth point and Tate drained another 3-pointer for a game-high 47-32 lead and a timeout by the Hawks with 18:03 to play as the Blazers raced out to a 9-2 run to start the final half.  Williams extended the lead to 16 points with a pair of free throws with 15:34 remaining and a 51-35 lead.  Senior Mike Isler scored inside following a steal for a 56-37 lead with 13:48 to go as VSU opened the half scoring 18 of the first 25 points.  
 
Isler's sixth point of the game gave VSU a 20-point cushion at 64-44 with 9:22 to play and a timeout by the Hawks.  VSU opened the second half 11 of 15 from the field, while Shorter was just 5 of 16 from the floor to that point.  The Blazers stretched the lead to 68-44 on a pair of Rucker tosses with 8:22 to play, but the Hawks trimmed the deficit to 68-51 with a 7-0 run capped on a triple from Carter Selman with 6:54 to go.  Williams pushed the lead back over 20 points with a pair of free throws at 74-53 with four minutes to play.
 
The Blazers will be back in action on Saturday at 4 p.m. versus Lee University at The Complex for Hall of Fame Weekend.  Click here for more information on Hall of Fame.