MONTEVALLO, Ala. –   The University of Montevallo men's basketball team picked up its first road win of the year, 94-87, over Valdosta State, Monday, at The Complex in Valdosta, Georgia.
 
UM was led to its fifth win of the year behind a career-high 30-point performance for freshman Brandon Fussell, along with 24 points from Cam Glover and an 18 point-11-rebound double-double for Jack Henderson.
 
The Falcons turned in its best offensive first-half of the season, Monday against the Blazers, shooting 58.8 percent from the floor with nine made three-pointers at a 50 percent clip. UM's 50-point outpouring in the opening 20 minutes is the most this season, as Fussell tallied 20 points before halftime to surpass his previous career-high of 19. The freshman from Guntersville, Alabama, shot 9-of-14 from the field in the first half and dished out four assists.
After trading buckets early on, Montevallo trailed 18-17 before using an 11-2 run to take a 28-20 lead following a trio of three-pointers. The Falcons stayed in front of VSU the remainder of the half. The lead was pushed to as many as 12 after Fussell added his 20^th point at the 2:22 mark. UM entered the locker room at halftime with a nine-point lead, 50-41.
 
The Falcons remained in front of VSU to begin the second-half and surged ahead to its largest lead of the game, 73-59, midway through. Glover took over as UM's leader in the second half as he scored 18 of his 24 total points in the final frame. A 14-5 run for VSU, beginning at the 9:29 mark, cut Montevallo's 14-point lead down to six with 4:50 to play. In response, junior Aidan Gardiner scored his first points of the game to push the lead to eight, 80-72.
Three triples from the Blazers kept the home side alive as the clock ticked under two minutes. However, with 1:58 to go Fussell delivered the dagger, as he drained his third three of the game following an offensive rebound from Landon Butler to put UM ahead by six, 86-80. The Falcons held on from the free-throw line down the stretch, winning 94-87.
 

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Montevallo 94 | Valdosta State 87
Records: Montevallo 5-10 (4-7 GSC) | Valdosta State 6-7 (3-6 GSC)
Location: The Complex | Valdosta, Georgia
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 1^st | Montevallo held a lead at halftime for the sixth time this season and 3-2 when doing so thus far. The Falcons offense exploded for a season-high 50 points in the first 20 minutes on a 58.8 percent shooting clip from the floor and nine made three-pointers. An 11-2 run pushed Montevallo into control midway through, 28-20. UM gained its largest lead of the half, 12 points, 46-34, at the 2:22 mark after Brandon Fussell scored his 20^th point, setting a career high.

2^nd | Montevallo was outscored 46-44 in the second-half but led the entire way. UM matched its largest lead from the first half and then some with a three from Glover to lead 73-59 at the 9:22 mark. Montevallo held off the Blazers down the stretch as Fussell put UM ahead by six with under two minutes to play, 86-80. The Falcons added six threes in the second half.

GAME NOTES

• The Falcons earned its first win of the season on the road and pick up just the second road-win all-time in the series history against Valdosta State.
• Montevallo reached the 94-plus point mark for the sixth time this season but turned in a season-high 54.5 percent field-goal percentage.
• With 15 threes on the night the Falcons finished just one shy of tying the season-high while shooting 41.7 percent from long-range.
• UM outrebounded its opponent for the sixth time this season, 39-30, and picked up the fourth win of the year when doing so.
• Aidan Gardiner led UM on the boards with a career-high 12 while Jack Henderson added 11 rebounds in a double-double effort.
• Montevallo scored 50 points and made nine three-pointers in the first half. Both are season-bests.
• Brandon Fussell led a quartet of Falcons in double-figures on the night with 30, including 20 in the first half. He finished with 30 points, five assists and four rebounds, on 55 percent shooting from the floor. Fussell is the third Falcons to record a 30-point game this season with the other two being Justin Graham (31) and Jaylen Curry (32).
• Cam Glover turned in his third 20-plus point game of the season with 24. In the second half Glover became a driving force of UM's offense as he scored 18 of his total 24 points in the frame.
• Landon Butler added 11 points of the bench for UM as he totaled a career-high three three-pointer and finished 3-of-4 from deep.

UP NEXT: Montevallo continues a three-game road trip on the road in Montgomery, Alabama against AUM, Saturday, Jan. 13 4 p.m.