LIVINGSTON, Ala. – The University of West Alabama men's basketball team's upset bid over fifth-ranked Valdosta State fell short, 85-75 on Thursday night in Gulf South Conference action.
The Blazers remained perfect in the GSC East at 8-0 pushed their overall mark to 23-2. The Tigers dropped to 2-6 in the conference and 12-13 overall. The Tigers will travel to West Georgia on Saturday, Feb. 20 with GSC Tournament hopes on the line.
UWA could not withstand a strong second half scoring surge by VSU as the Red and Black out-scored the Tigers 53-37 in the final half. VSU overcame a 38-32 halftime deficit after knocking down 15-of-25 from the field in the second half. VSU's Ricardo Lewis and posted all of his 18 points in the second half along with Christian Hunter's 15 points in the period. After UWA took its largest lead of the game, 40-32, on the first basket of the final stanza, the Blazers brought the game to a deadlock with 17:15 left to play at 42-all. VSU went on a 26-15 scoring spurt over the next 13 minutes to take its fist double-digit lead at 68-58. The Tigers could not break the VSU momentum as the closest UWA got was seven on two occasions in the final three minutes of the contest.
Senior Jason Swanson turned in a 24 point outing to lead all scorers. The Troy, Ala.-forward knocked down 8-of-11 shots from the field and drained eight free throws. Sophomore Alquan Mendenhall pitched in 15 points on five three three-pointers. Brandon Hampton added 12 points off the bench.
Current GSC East Player of the Week, Tyrone Curnell turned in a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. VSU's Tristan Crawford pitched in 15 points.
Saturday's contest with the Wolves of UWG is set for 6:30 p.m. CST and will be carried on Fox Sports 104.9 FM along with a live audio link at www.uwaathletics.com. Live stats will also be available.
