SCORE

Montevallo 77, Lander 69

RECORDS

Montevallo (6-1 overall, 1-0 in Peach Belt Conference)

Lander (3-5 overall, 0-1 in Peach Belt Conference)

LOCATION

Trustmark Arena (Montevallo, Alabama)

HOW IT HAPPENED

Montevallo opened Peach Belt Conference play with a 77-69 win over Lander at Trustmark Arena.

A frantic start to the game saw a 6-0 Montevallo lead erased by a 9-0 run by Lander before the remainder of the half turned into a back-and-forth affair. A layup by Telvin Gabriel with 32 seconds remaining gave Lander its largest lead in the opening half at 37-33 before a jumper by senior Javonte Douglas on the final possession trimmed the Bearcats' slim lead to 37-35 at the break.

It took a little while for Montevallo to get going in the second half but it eventually took control with huge scoring output from Douglas and senior Jamaar Taylor, who combined for 29 of the Falcons' 42 points in the final 20 minutes.

A layup by Douglas gave Montevallo a 48-46 lead with 13:48 remaining in the game. The Bearcats managed to tie the contest at 67-67 on a fastbreak layup by J.R. Washington with 2:31 left before Douglas gave the Falcons the lead for good 20 seconds later.

Lander's hot-shooting from beyond the arc with 11 3-pointers was overshadowed by the Falcons' 16-point advantage in the paint against the Bearcats.

STAT OF THE GAME

Senior Javonte Douglas had another impressive game as he posted his fourth double-double of the season in a monster performance. The Charlotte, North Carolina native scored 33 points, only one shy of his career high, while grabbing a career-best 20 rebounds against the Bearcats.

UP NEXT

The Falcons return to action Monday, Dec. 19 in another Peach Belt Conference contest against visiting Armstrong State University at Trustmark Arena. Tip off is set for 7:30 p.m. after the women's game.