CLINTON, Miss. – The No. 25 ranked Valdosta State Blazers picked up their fourth-straight win on Thursday night, as they defeated the Mississippi College Choctaws by a final of 96-74. VSU improved to 10-2 (5-1 GSC) while MC dropped to 6-7 (2-5 GSC).
 
The Blazers jumped out to an early 12-2 lead and never looked back, as they led the entire night and cruised to a road victory to open 2025. Senior Braxton Williams scored a season-high 26 points in just 24 minutes of action as the guard shot 9-12 from the field and 6-7 distance, which is a career high for makes during his time in Valdosta. Drew Mills also put together a nice game, as the forward from Baltimore recorded his fourth 20-point game as he tallied 20 points on 6-9 from the floor, 3-4 from deep, and 5-6 from the line. VSU held MC's Rashad Bolden in check, as the guard averaging 25 PPG heading into tonight was held to 20 points on 4-13 from the floor and committed eight turnovers.
 
As a team, Valdosta State shot 34-60 (.567) from the floor, 15-26 (.577) from deep, and 13-24 (.542) from the field. For Mississippi College, they shot .431 from the field, .467 from distance, and .895 from the charity stripe on 17 makes.
 
The Blazers forced 26 turnovers that resulted 25 points for the evening. The bench also came to play today, as they combined for 28 points as everyone who checked into the game contributed for head coach Mike Helfer.
 
Junior Drew Mills opened the scoring for VSU with a triple at the top of the key to put the Blazers up 3-0 early on the Choctaws. MC responded with a dunk on the other end to get into the scoring column. The Blazers jumped out to a 10-2 lead on four forced turnovers as a three-pointer from junior MJ Jones forced a timeout from head coach Randy Bolden with 16:50 left in the first half.
 
Coming out of the first media timeout, junior Lucas Brown Jr. hit the third VSU triple of the first half as they led 15-4 with 14:30 remaining in the first half. Following a pair of free throws from Rashad Bolden, senior Braxton Williams laid one in on the right side to keep the lead at nine. Another triple from Drew Mills gave VSU a 23-13 lead heading into the under-12 timeout.
 
Braxton Williams came out of the timeout with a steal that resulted in a layup from senior Carlos Hart as the Blazers led by a dozen with 10:03 left in half number one. The Blazers continued to harass the Choctaw guards as they had forced 12 turnovers through nearly 12 minutes of action. Lucas Brown Jr's second triple of the first half followed by a triple from junior Maalik Leitch had VSU doubling up the Choctaws with a 34-17 lead heading into the media timeout.
 
The Choctaws came out the timeout on a 5-0 run to cut the lead to 17. A triple from junior Ethan Pires in the left corner surpassed the momentum quickly. A foul put MC in the bonus for the final five minutes of the first half, where Bolden knocked home a pair as VSU led 37-23. Back-to-back three-pointers from Braxton Williams on the right wing grew the lead back to 20 with three minutes remaining. Another three, this time from Williams gave the Blazers a 52-31 lead at halftime in Clinton.
 
At the break, VSU shot 11-19 from deep compared to MC's 1-4. Six different players hit a three for Valdosta State as Drew Mills and Braxton Williams each went 3-4 from distance. The Blazers scored 12 points on 13 forced turnovers as the full-court press proved to be tough for the Choctaw backcourt.
 
The Blazer defense forced a turnover that resulted in an easy layup from Braxton Williams to open the second half.  Mississippi College was able to cut the deficit to 18 as a triple from the right wing was true. Braxton Williams continued to pour it on as he retaliated with a three-pointer of his own. Another three-pointer and a free throw from MC's Odis Carter made it 60-43 with just over 16 minutes remaining. An and-one from Carter cut it to 17 heading into the under-16 media break.
 
Following a missed Blazer layup, junior LaDarrius Chigano swatted his second shot of the night that resulted in a layup from Leitch. Back to back stops and great ball movement got junior Ethan Pires loose on the left wing where the left knocked home another triple as the Blazers led by 20 with 11:29 left in the game.
 
A quick 5-0 run capped off by a triple from MC's Tremaine Dixon cut the lead to 15 that prompted a timeout from head coach Mike Helfer as VSU still led 73-58 with 10:19 left. Braxton Williams got the shooters touch as he rimmed home his fifth triple in six attempts. A pair of free throws from Bolden for his 16^th and 17^th points of the night with just over nine minutes remaining. A touchdown like pass that resulted in an easy layup cut the lead to 13 with 8:01 remaining.
 
VSU extended the lead back to 19 as the Blazers quickly went on a 6-0 run as a steal and score from Cobey Harraway with 6:59 left in the half. A turnaround three-pointer from Rashad Bolden brought it back to 14 as the Choctaws wouldn't go down easy. After a free throw from the Choctaws, Braxton Williams knocked home his sixth three in just seven attempts as it was all of a sudden 90-70 heading into the final media timeout.
 
Following a slew of technical fouls assessed to both teams, play resumed and Valdosta State was able to coast to a 96-74 victory.
 
Valdosta State is back in action on Saturday, Jan. 4 at 5 p.m. ET at Delta State to wrap up their road trip before they return to Titletown to host a pair of teams from the Volunteer State.