MONTEVALLO, Ala. – Montevallo's late free throw shooting proved to be the difference in a 77-74 win over Delta State on Thursday night.
 
Cam Glover opened the game with a three from the left wing for the first points of the game before Delta State opened a 7-0 run in the next two minutes. Freshman Brandon Fussell snapped the run with a right-handed finish before adding another three from the corner on the next possession. Two minutes later, Glover snapped a scoreless stretch for the Falcons to tie the game at 10 apiece before the junior gave the Falcons a 12-10 lead in transition. On the next Falcon possession, Aidan Gardiner was rewarded for running the floor and nearly ripped down the rim to go up 14-10. The Statesmen answered with a 9-0 run to take a 19-14 lead before Gardiner ended the run with a baby hook on the left block.
 
The Falcons cut the lead down to three with back-to-back buckets from Gardiner at the 10:34 mark. With seven minutes to play in the first half, Tyson Sexton knocked down a mid-range jumper to cut the lead down to one before Delta State answered with a long two on the other end. Senior Jack Henderson knotted the game with 5:09 on the clock with a triple from the top of the key before Delta State answered with a three of its own. Both sides went scoreless for the next two minutes until Glover shook his defender with a spin move and finished at the rim to tie the game at 32-32. Junior Cole Maddox finished through contact and converted the and-one to knot the game at 35 with 1:37 to play in the half. Delta State answered a Montevallo bucket with its seventh three of the half to take a 40-37 lead into the half.
 
Fussell ended a scoreless three-minute start to the half for the Falcons with a floater in the paint to cut into a Delta State lead. Glover added his 11^th point of the game with a finish at the rim before Fussell gave the Falcons its first lead since early in the first half. Fussell extended the lead with a one-man 5-0 run after another finish at the rim to put the Falcons up 46-43 with 14:21 to play. The Falcons continued a 12-0 run with right-handed finish from Henderson before the freshman Fussell went up and under to go up by six. The Statesmen answered with back-to-back buckets to trim Montevallo's lead to 51-50 at the under 12 media timeout. The Falcons regained control on the scoreboard with a Maddox three from the corner following a lead change from DSU moments earlier.
 
Landon Bulter knocked down an open three from the corner to give the Falcons a two-point advantage with 9:30 to go before Delta State tied it up off a Falcon turnover. The Statesmen took the lead with 7:36 on an old-school three-point play. Montevallo tied its up moments later as Maddox continued his hot half with another corner three, this time from the opposite corner, just before DSU answered with a bucket in the paint. Glover knotted the game at 63 all after losing his defender in the spin cycle and finishing with the right hand before nailing a step-back triple with 4:42 on the clock. The two sides traded blows down the stretch with Montevallo shooting 4-for-4 from the line to match a pair of Statesmen buckets. Gardiner converted two at the line to cut the DSU lead down to one with less than two minutes to play. Fussell gave the Falcons a 74-73 lead with 1:13 to play off a contested layup before the Falcons fouled a three-point shooter who made just one of three with 53.5 seconds to go. With the score tied 74-74, Fussell broke the tie with a turnaround jumper in the paint at the 34-second mark. Gardiner ripped down a clutch rebound with 7 seconds on the clock with a 76-74 Falcon lead and made one of two at the stripe to send the Falcons to a 77-74 win over Delta State.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: Montevallo 77 | Delta State 74
Records: Montevallo 8-13 (7-10 GSC) | Delta State 11-9 (9-7 GSC)
Location: Central State Bank Arena | Montevallo, Ala.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
1^ST | The Falcons led just twice in the first half with the opening bucket and a run midway through the half. Montevallo's offense was efficient in the first 20 minutes with a 55.2-percent shooting mark from the floor while shooting just 3-for-11 from long range. The Statesmen knocked down 15-of-30 shots from the field while going 7-for-19 from three-point range. Cam Glover led the Falcons on the offensive end with nine points on a 4-for-9 shooting mark while Tyson Sexton dished out four assists in the half.
2^ND | Montevallo's offense improved in the second half with a 61.9-percent shooting clip and a 5-for-7 mark from long range. The Falcons 75-percent shooting clip from the charity stripe proved to be the difference with clutch free throws down the stretch. Brandon Fussell's 13 second half points led all scorers in the half while Aidan Gardiner ripped down six boards in the final 20 minutes.
 
GAME NOTES

• The Falcons lost the turnover battle 13-6 while the Statesmen converted those to 17 points on the other end.
• Montevallo's 58 percent shooting mark is the highest in a single game so far this season.
• Cole Maddox set a career high with 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting with eight points coming in the second half.
• The Falcons won the battle in the paint with a 38-30 advantage in scoring down low.
• Montevallo led for just 8:51 in the game but led when it mattered down the stretch.

 
UP NEXT: Montevallo plays host to Mississippi College on Saturday, Feb. 3 with tipoff set for 4 p.m.