LIVINGSTON, Ala. –West Alabama could not recover from a fast pace first half by West Georgia as the Tigers fell 78-63 in Gulf South Conference Men's Basketball action at Pruitt Hall Thursday. The loss eliminates any post season conference tournament hopes.

West Georgia ends the regular season on a six game win streak, finishing 19-8 overall and 16-6 in the GSC. The Wolves clinch a second seed in the conference tournament. West Alabama ends its season 12-16 and 8-14.

"I don't think there has been any question about our effort all year, but at times I've wondered about our mental effort tonight," said UWA head coach Allen Sharpe.

"It was just hard for us to recover from giving up 44 points in the first half. The pace was just too fast. I knew at half that we were in trouble, but we did much better in the second half. We just lost this game in the first half."

Halfway through the first half, the Wolves set its early pace with a 13 point run, taking a 26-16 lead which they would not relinquish back to the Tigers for the rest of the game. Steph Branch and Marcus Dortch each sank both of their 3-point field goal attempts, leading UWG to 6-of-11 (54 percent) from beyond the arc in the half. The Wolves combined to shoot 17-of-34 (50 percent) from the field to take a 44-29 lead at halftime.

UWA matched West Georgia stride for stride in the second half as both teams tallied 34 second half points. The Tigers improved from 10-of-26 from the field (38 percent) in the first to 14-of-30 (47 percent) in the second.

Shannon Fowler kept UWG on top with 13 second half points, ending the game with 21. He was 10-of-14 from the field. Branch finished with 14 points and Dortch totaled 12.

It was a career night for junior Billy Ingram as he posted his first double-double of the year with 16 points and 17 rebounds. He finished 7-of-13 from the field, including a 3-pointer.

Playing in their final games as Tigers, Deontaye Ewing and Dakari Mayo each tallied double-figures scoring. Ewing posted 13 points, hitting 5-of-10 from the field and 3-of-4 at the free-throw line.

Mayo added 11 points, while blocking seven of Wolves' shots. He ends his career with 161 total blocks and the program's third all-time leader. He continues to hold the program and conference record with 14 blocked shots set earlier in the season at West Georgia.

Junior Acie Vance also notched double-figures with 10 points. He led the team with eight assists.

"It's just unfortunate to end the year like this," Sharpe said.

"First of all it doesn't even seem like we've had a full basketball season. It's just been a weird year, playing long road stretches and being inconstant with our play. If you coach long enough you are going to have a year or two like that, but I hate the way it ended here tonight."