CARROLLTON, Ga. - The University of West Alabama men's basketball team was defeated by the University of West Georgia by a final score of 91-65 inside The Coliseum on Tuesday night.
Thaddeus Williams picked up right where he left off against Delta State, scoring the first five points of the game off on a reverse layup and a three pointer.
Jaylen Lemons and Tyler Talley followed quickly with a pair of layups to put West Alabama up 9-0 early as the Wolves struggled to find offensive rhythm against the fifth ranked defense in Division II from Livingston.
West Georgia found life after the first media timeout, closing the gap to six points with twelve and a half to go. Kolten Griffin brought UWG within one possession with four straight hits from the charity stripe, closing the gap to 13-11 with 11:33 to go.
Cameron Donatlan broke a six-minute field goal drought between the Wolves and the Tigers with a put-back layup with 7:26 remaining in the first half, giving them a 19-15 lead.
Talley brought the Tigers back within one possession with a corner triple off an assist from CJ Melton at the 6:29 mark.
Williams accounted for a quick 5-0 West Alabama run, giving UWA a 24-23 lead with 4:21 left. Williams continued his hot streak of scoring with 16 of the Tigers' 31 first half points.
Malcolm Noel concluded the first half scoring with a 3-pointer to put the Wolves up 35-31 lead at the half.
Melton opened the second half scoring with a triple just 14 seconds into the restart.
West Georgia's Amari Davis stretched the lead to six points with a layup at the 18:14 mark, giving UWG the 41-35 advantage.
Jaylen Lemons was fouled on a 3-point attempt and hit nylon on all three charity stripe opportunities to bring it back with two at 43-41.
Zawdie Jackson and the Wolves answered with an electric run to widen the lead to 52-41, capped off by a dunk from Cameron Donatlan with 13:31 remaining in the contest.
West Georgia did not look back after the under-12 timeout, closing out the game on a 39-24 run.
The Wolves scored 56 points in the final 20 minutes on 20-for-30 shooting. On the defensive end, West Georgia held West Alabama to 7-for-23 shooting.
West Alabama struggled from the field overall, shooting 17-for-58 overall, 7-for-23 in the second half.
Thaddeus Williams led the Tigers in scoring with 21 points on 6-for-13 shooting and 4-for-5 from 3-point land. Tyler Talley added 11 points off the bench on 5-for-10 shooting.
West Georgia's Zawdie Jackson, who averaged 20 points per game coming into Tuesday's matchup, added 26 points on 7-for-11 shooting and hitting all ten of his free throws.
West Alabama falls to 9-3 overall and 6-2 in GSC play, while West Georgia moves to 10-2 overall and 6-2.
West Alabama will stay on the road as they travel to Union on Saturday. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. in Jackson, Tenn.
