Strong Second Half Leads No. 13 Falcons to Victory, 65-59
SAVANNAH, Ga. - The 13th-ranked University of Montevallo men's basketball team (14-1, 4-1 PBC) erased a four-point halftime deficit to win on the road 65-59 at Armstrong Atlantic State University (5-10, 0-6 PBC). The Falcons were once again led by their big men inside as junior Cecil Coleman (Tampa, Fla./Tampa Bay Tech) scored a season-high 20 points after hitting 7-of-9 shots from the floor and 6-of-9 from the charity stripe. Reigning Peach Belt Conference Player of the Week Gerald January (Macon, Ga./Westside) had 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds.
The Falcons had three players score eight points including senior MarkPlaza (San Diego, Calif./Chula Vista), junior Tauras Dortch (Ensley, Ala./Ramsay) and redshirt freshman Jonas Brown (Tifton, Ga./Tift County). Plaza added a team-high six assists and six rebounds. Dortch also had six rebounds.
The Falcons scored 19 points off turnovers which was 12 points better than the Pirates.
UM opened the game on a 7-0 run aided by five points from Brown. The Pirates responded with a 15-3 run which gave them a 15-10 lead with 12:10 left in the first half. The score would remain close the rest of the half. The Falcons led 28-26 with 1:35 left in the period but six points from Keron McKenzie in the final 1:18 gave the Pirates a 32-28 lead at halftime.
The second half began with both teams trading baskets which allowed the Pirates to hang onto a six point lead for the first seven minutes of the period. Down 41-35 with 13:56 left in the game the Falcons went on a 10-1 run to take a 45-42 lead capped off by a Freddy Little (Raleigh, N.C./Bunn) three-pointer.
The two teams then began trading baskets for the next five minutes with neither team gaining much of an advantage. Up 51-50 with 4:55 remaining the Falcons went on a 7-0 run fueled by five points from Coleman. The Falcons held the lead the rest of the way as the Pirates could only get within four points over the final 3:31.
The Falcons will return to action Wednesday, Jan. 20 at 6:30 p.m. as they travel to Clayton State University for another tough Peach Belt Conference match-up. CSU is 9-6 on the season and 2-3 in PBC play.
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