VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State men's basketball team will make the trip to Alabama for a crucial pair of GSC games, starting with Montevallo on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 8:30 p.m. ET before making the trip to Montgomery, Ala. to face Auburn Montgomery on Saturday, Feb. 24 at 5 p.m. ET.
 
The Blazers hit the road with a 10-14 (7-13 GSC) record and are winners of two straight. Valdosta State defeated Union at The Complex on Saturday, Feb. 10 before most recently defeated West Florida on the road on Feb. 17. Five Blazers scored in double figures for the game, and were led by graduate student LaTrell Tate, who scored a season-high 26 points and grabbed a career-high nine versus his former team. Senior Mike Isler had another strong showing, scoring 17 points on 7-11 from the floor. As a team, VSU shot 19-21 from the line, a season best .905 clip.
 
LaTrell Tate has been a different type of player since the calendar flipped over to 2024. The Marietta, Ga. native has averaged 17.0 points on .434 from the floor, .472 from distance, and .813 from the line since Jan. 2. Tate has complied a total of 19 steals, 32 assists, and 54 rebounds in 13 games started during the 2024 calendar year.
 
Senior Lee Flenor has been dominant on the glass this season, averaging a league-high 8.0 rebounds per night. The Miami, Fla. native is averaging 10.4 points a game for the season on a team-high .547 clip from the floor.
 
As a team, Valdosta State is averaging 76.7 points a night under 19^th year head coach Mike Helfer. The Blazers are shooting a .455 clip from the floor and .336 from beyond the arc for the season, while holding opponents to 79.4 points a night on .465 from the floor and .336 from three on an average of 8.6 makes.
 
The Blazers will be taking on the Montevallo Falcons on Thursday night. The Falcons are entering this showdown with a 10-15 (9-12 GSC) overall record. UM traveled to Titletown on Jan. 8 and defeated VSU 94-87 thanks to a career-high 30 points from true freshman Brandon Fussell in a closely contested contest. On the season, Montevallo is averaging 78.7 points per contest on 10.6 threes made, good for second in the GSC. Their offense is led by the two-headed monster of Jaylen Curry and Cameron Glover, who are averaging 16.2 and 16.0 points a night, respectively. The Falcons are led by second year head coach Anthony Komara. In his second season since serving as associate head coach at Alabama Huntsville, he has compiled a career 20-33 record.
 
Following the Montevallo game, the Blazers will make the trip to Montgomery, Ala. to face the Warhawks of Auburn Montgomery. The Warhawks will come into this matchup with the Blazers holding a 10-15 (7-14 GSC) record pending their matchup versus West Florida on Thursday. Back on Jan. 6, AUM defeated VSU 88-76 in Titletown behind 26 points from graduate student Travis Anderson. The Warhawks recorded ten steals for the game, and as a result scored 19 points on the break. For the season, the Warhawks are led in scoring by senior forward Malachi Rhodes, who is putting up 14.0 points per game on .510 from the floor and .868 from the line, which is second in the GSC. Auburn Montgomery is led by head coach Michael Cheaney. Cheaney is in his 10^th season with AUM. He holds a career record of 111-159. As a team, Cheaney's offense averages 75.6 points per night on .447 from the floor and .359 from distance on 7.0 made per game.
 
Following the road trip, the Blazers come back to Titletown to host West Alabama on Feb. 29 and Alabama Huntsville on Mar. 2 for senior night and to wrap up the regular season.