MONTEVALLO, Ala. -- The Montevallo men's basketball team is getting their groove at the right time, earning their fourth straight win on Saturday. The Falcons earned a hard-fought 79-73 win over Valdosta State, exacting a little revenge for a 79-53 shellacking in Georgia earlier this season. We the win, the Falcons improved to 10-7 in the Gulf South Conference and 12-13 overall, while VSU fell below .500 overall at 11-12 and 7-9 in the GSC.

The Falcons are currently log-jammed in a group of five teams with similar records in the race for the GSC tournament, UM is tied for fourth place with West Florida, with West Georgia, Delta State and Alabama-Huntsville nipping at their heels. The top eight teams get tickets to the GSC dance, with the top four earning the right to host a first round contest on campus.

Five Falcons scored in double-figures, led by guard Braxton Bertolette, who finished the game with 21 points. Forward Aaris-Monte Bonds muscled his way to a double-double, dropping in 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Meanwhile, Jason King added 15 points, James McNeil tallied 13 points and senior guard Xavier Malcom contributed 12 points and four assists.

VSU was led by Cam Hamilton who finished with 17 points. Jacolbey Owens added 16 points and seven assists, while Maurice Gordon also had `16 points and Michael Cole inked 12 points.

The Falcons led by as much as nine points in the first half, 29-20, but VSU closed the gap to 36-31 by halftime.  The lead grew to double-digits in the second half when Malcom scored on the layup with 10:47 left to give the Falcons a 58-48 lead with 10:47 left. But, the Blazers rallied to tie the game at 59-all with an 11-1 run. VSU pulled ahead 66-65 with 4:26 left on a jumper by Gordon. But, the Falcons jumped back in front on a pair of freethrows by Bertolette with 4:02 left. After a turnover by the Blazers, Bertolette buried a 3-pointer with 3:20 to give UM a 70-66 lead.

The Blazers got back to within two points on two other occasions down the stretch, but the Falcons held on for the win.

Next up -- The Falcon play the first of their last three regular season games, all on the road, on Thursday, Feb. 17 at Mississippi College. in Clinton, Mississippi. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

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