VALDOSTA, Ga.  – The Valdosta State men's basketball team outscored visiting Auburn Montgomery 59-37 in the second half for a 110-80 victory Saturday afternoon at The Complex.  The Blazers had five players in double figures led by a game-high 31 points from senior Drew Mills. 

VSU improved to 11-6 overall and 6-5 in Gulf South Conference play, while AUM fell to 3-14 overall and 1-10 in league play.  Mills finished 14 of 21 from the field and 3 of 3 from the line, while recording 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.  He became the first Blazer to score 30 or more points in back-to-back games since former Blazer star Beau Justice with 32 points and 40 points, respectively on Jan. 18 and Jan. 20, 2018, versus AUM and West Georgia.  Blazer junior Blaise Wallace chipped in 19 points, while three players were in double figures coming off the bench with 12 points from junior Devon Rainey, 11 from senior Maalik Leitch and ten from senior Michael Batchelor.  Mills scored 31 points Thursday evening in the 101-83 win over preseason GSC-favorite Montevallo.  The 100 points scored by VSU Saturday afternoon marked the seven time the Blazers have eclipsed the century mark this season.

The Blazers used an 8-2 run early in the game after trailing 9-8 for a 16-11 lead with 14:47 to play in the half as senior Maalik Leitch scored five points during the early going.   Two triples from Marius Canery pulled the Warhawks within 18-17, but senior Lucas Brown Junior had a nice layup, sparking a 6-0 run for a 24-17 advantage with 12:39 to play capped with Leitch's ninth point of the game.  AUM pulled within 24-22 on Canery's two charity tosses, but two thefts and scores from senior Michael Batchelor pushed the lead to 28-22.  

AUM was in the bonus with 8:49 to play as Colby Williams hit two free throws for the Warhawks pulling within 35-29 with 9:02 to play in the half.   Senior Drew Mills hit a 14-footer for a 39-29 VSU lead marking the largest of the game to that point.  Junior Blaise Wallace scored in the paint for a 41-29 score with 6:46 to play in the half.   To that point VSU was 18 of 29 from the field for 62.1 percent, while holding AUM to 10 of 21.  The Warhawks stayed within striking distance due to free throw shooting as they were 7 of 8 from the line, while VSU was 2 of 2.  VSU committed eight fouls through the first 13:29 of the game, while AUM had just three fouls.  

Junior Devon Rainey hit a triple in transition giving VSU its largest lead of the game at 47-34 with 3:54 left in the half.  Out of the final media timeout of the half, senior Peter McKey found senior Tony Green Junior for an alley-oop dunk and a 49-37 lead with just over two minutes remaining in the half.   AUM pulled within 49-43 with a 6-0 run.   Mills scored following a steal for a put back at the buzzer ending the drought for a 51-43 lead at the break.

For the half Mills paced the Blazers wit h14 points, while Canery also had 14 points for AUM.  VSU shot 22 of 40 from the field, while AUM was 14 of 29.  The teams combined for nine 3-pointers, while AUM was 10 of 11 from the line and VSU was 3 of 4.  

A big 3-pointer from junior Samarion Bond pushed the VSU lead to 61-45 early in the second half and a 10-2 run to start the half.   Mills continued to find buckets inside for a 65-50 lead and his 20th point of the game with 16:47 to play.  

Brown junior hit a triple for a 74-52 lead with 12:18 to play as VSU opened the second half scoring 23 of the first 34 points.  Rainey scored two nice buckets and earned the hoop-and-harm as VSU pushed the lead to 81-54 with 10:45 to play and a 9-2 run.  A triple from Batchelor pushed the lead to 30 at 84-54.  AUM used an 8-0 run trimming the deficit to 84-62 with 8:30 to play and a timeout by VSU.  

The Warhawks kept chipping away and hitting shots from distance pulling within 92-70 with 5:20 to play.   Wallace buried a triple for a 101-72 lead with under four minutes to play as it marked the seventh time VSU has eclipsed 100 points this season and the second time of doing it in back-to-back games as VSU had 101 points on Thursday in the win over Montevallo.  

For the game, VSU shot 56.1 percent from the field on 46 of 82 from the field as the Blazers achieved 40 or more made field goals for the fourth time this season.  VSU was 9 of 21 from distance and 9 of 10 from the line.  AUM finished 27 of 66 from the field for a 40.9 clip, while it was 9 of 27 from range and 17 of 20 from the line. 

The Blazers return to the road this coming week, beginning the second half of the league season at UAH and at West Alabama.  The Blazers then return home to close out the month of January on Jan. 31 versus West Florida at 4 p.m. at The Complex.  The game against UWF is in conjunction with Hall of Fame Weekend and the B.A.A.R.  Click here for information and to register for Hall of Fame.