VALDOSTA, Ga. – The No. 19 Valdosta State Blazers improved to 12-2 (7-1 GSC) following a 102-79 beatdown of the Union Bulldogs. VSU passed the century mark for the second straight game and the fifth time overall, as they were firing on all cylinders. Valdosta State currently sits in second place in the GSC standings while UU dropped to 7-7 overall and 3-5 in GSC play while they sit at eighth in the standings.
 
The Blazers made a season-high 40 field goals, as they shot 40-78 from the floor for an impressive .513 clip as they also knocked home eight three pointers and made 14 free throws on 21 attempts. VSU would hold UU to .397 from the floor and an abysmal .238 from deep on just five makes. As a team, Valdosta State forced 20 turnovers on 15 steals as all of those live ball turnovers resulted in 33 fast break points for the night as VSU was ranked second in the nation in points in transition coming into this game.
 
Seniors Carlos Hart and Braxton Williams were an unstoppable duo tonight, as Hart finished with 21 points, seven assists, and a season-high six steals while shooting 7-10 from the floor. For Williams, he go on to score 21 points in the first half before cooling off in the second to finish with 25 points and six rebounds on 9-16 from the floor and 3-8 from distance. This is the second time the duo have combined for 40+, as they accomplished this feat back on 11/12 versus Morehouse College. Junior Drew Mills did damage from the bench, as the former Maryland JUCO Player of the Year scored 18 points while hauling in seven rebounds and tying a season high in blocks with two rejection on the evening. Junior Lucas Brown Jr. was also a menace from the bench, as the guard scored 16 points off the pine on four makes from deep and a perfect 4-4 at the charity stripe. The Valdosta State bench unit would combine for nearly half of the team's points, as five players would combine for 46 points from head coach Mike Helfer's second unit.
 
Carlos Hart would hit a triple from the left wing 14 seconds into the game to put VSU up 3-0 where they would never look back, as they led for all but those opening 14 seconds on Thursday night. Things got hot quickly, as a layup from junior MJ Jones followed by back to back baskets from Braxton Williams put the Blazers up 10-0 two and a half minutes into the game that would quickly force a Bulldog timeout. Union would get a basket to go inside coming out of the break that was quickly extinguished by an elegant finish from Braxton Williams, who would go on to score 21 first half points. VSU would enter the first media timeout with a 16-4 lead as The Complex was backing the Blazers early-on.
 
Coming out of the break, Valdosta State would start a 12-6 run to jump out to an 18-point lead with just under 12 minutes left in the first half. Both teams were trading blows as the Bulldogs couldn't gain any ground on the red-hot Blazers. Union was able to cut the game to single digits with 1:23 left in the first half on a layup from Victor Isaiah that was quickly brought back to double digits on a wide open layup inside from MJ Jones. Both teams would head to the locker room as VSU was up 55-43 over UU.
 
In the first half, the Blazers were dominant inside as they scored 32 points in the paint as everyone was getting solid looks. For the Bulldogs, they had committed 11 turnovers that resulted in 13 VSU points as Mike Helfer's full-court pressure was proving costly to UU. The duo of Williams and Hart combined for 34 first half points as the duo nearly outscored Union by themselves.
 
Union would score the first four points of the second half as last week's GSC Player of the Week Parker Applegate would knock home a pair of free throws. From there, VSU erupted on a 16-3 run over four minutes of play to balloon the lead to 21 with 14:16 left in the game. Following a tipin from Drew Mills, Union head coach David Niven was assessed with a technical foul at the 11:26 mark that all but buried the Bulldogs. Union was never able to get the game within 17 as Valdosta State would come out on top, 102-79.
 
The Blazers will now turn their attention to the Christian Brothers Bucs, who came back to defeat West Florida after trailing by 16 points at halftime in Pensacola, Fla. on Thursday night. The matchup is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 11 at 4 p.m. at The Complex.