MONTEVALLO, Ala. – Montevallo men's basketball returns to Central State Bank Arena for the first time in 2025 to take on Valdosta State and West Florida for a pair of Gulf South Conference games.
 
So Far This Season…
The Falcons head into the weekend with an 11-4 overall record and a 7-2 mark in conference play after opening the season with a 93-81 win over Barry on Nov. 8. Montevallo dropped its first meeting of the season to No. 2 Nova Southeastern before rebounding with a 99-92 road win over Spring Hill on Nov. 15. Montevallo grabbed a pair of nonconference wins over Point and Carolina Christian before dropping a matchup with Cumberland on Nov. 24. The Falcons opened conference action with a 75-60 win over Lee on Dec. 5 before hosting Trevecca Nazarene on Dec. 7 for an 89-71 UM victory. Montevallo then went on the road for an 89-81 win over Delta State and a 70-58 win against Mississippi College. The Falcons closed 2024 with two GSC victories over Christian Brothers, 70-66, and Union, 76-73. UM returned from the holiday break with a road trip to Auburn Montgomery for the first conference loss of the season before falling to No. 6 Alabama Huntsville on Jan. 9. Most recently, the Falcons got back into the win column with an 83-73 road win over West Alabama on Jan. 11.
 
Montevallo ranks fourth in the GSC with an average of 81.7 points per game on a third-best mark of 47.7 percent from the field and 35.6 percent from long range. On the glass, Montevallo tallies 35.4 rebounds per game with 11.0 of those coming on the offensive glass with the Falcons holding a 3.0 rebounding margin through 15 games. Montevallo spreads the ball around with 12.53 assists per game on an average of 28.0 field goals per game. Defensively, Montevallo allows just 76.0 points per game on a 45.5-percent clip from the field while forcing an average of 13.9 turnovers per game with a third-best 8.53 steals per game.
 
Offensively, the Falcons are led by Brandon Fussell who is scoring 18.5 points per game on a 51.5-percent shooting clip and a 42-percent mark from long range. The sophomore also averages 3.6 assists per game and 3.3 rebounds per game with 2.1 steals per game. Jaylen Curry ranks second on the squad with 16.5 points per game while leading the team on the glass at 5.8 rebounds per game. Derek Moore completes the Falcons' double-digit scorers with 12.9 points per contest on a 55.1-percent shooting mark and a 74.1-percent clip from the charity stripe while also pulling down 4.8 rebounds per game.
 
Scouting Valdosta State: WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
Valdosta State heads into the weekend with a 13-2 overall record and an 8-1 conference mark after opening the season with a 106-88 win over Fort Valley State before topping Clark Atlanta, 119-87, in early November. The Blazers took their first loss of the season on Nov. 12 with an 84-80 loss against Morehouse. VSU returned to winning ways with a win over Middle Georgia before topping Morehouse on Nov. 21. The Blazers closed the nonconference schedule with a 107-62 win over Thomas on Nov. 26. Valdosta State opened the GSC slate with a 92-82 win over West Alabama before falling to Alabama Huntsville on Dec. 7. VSU added home wins over West Florida, 90-88, Trevecca Nazarene, 90-84, and Lee, 78-71. Valdosta State then went on the road for a 96-74 win over Mississippi College before adding a 100-92 win over Delta State on Jan. 4. On Jan. 9, the Blazers took down Union, 102-79, before topping Christian Brothers, 90-75, in the Blazers' most recent outing.
 
Valdosta State boasts the top offense in the GSC with an average of 94.0 points per game on a 46.1-percent shooting clip from the field and a 35.6-percent mark from long range. The Blazers rank fifth in the GSC with an average of 36.2 rebounds per game with a second-best mark of 12.0 offensive rebounds per game. The Blazers are also one of the top defensive teams in the league with 12.47 steals per game with opponents shooting just 45.3-percent from the field.
 
The Blazers are led by Carlos Hart who averages 18.1 points per game on a 48.2-percent clip from the field and a 79.7-percent mark from the charity stripe while also leading the team on the glass with 6.5 rebounds per game and a team-high 5.2 assists per game. Braxton Williams ranks second on the squad with 16.4 points per game on 44.1 percent from the floor and 39.8 percent from three-point range. Drew Mills is third on the team with 14.1 points per game with a 53.0-percent mark from long range.  
 
Series History Against Valdosta State:
Since the Falcons joined Division II, Montevallo is 17-24 against the Blazers since the series began on Jan. 19, 1998. In the 15 games since Montevallo rejoined the GSC, the Falcons are 5-10 against VSU. The Falcons took back-to-back matchups against the Blazers between the 2022-23 season and the 2023-24 season. Most recently, Montevallo fell to Valdosta State, 76-73, at home on Feb. 22, 2024.
 
Scouting West Florida: WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
West Florida holds a 4-11 overall record and a 3-6 mark in GSC play through the first two months of the season. The Argos opened the season with a 61-51 loss to Clark Atlanta before topping Fort Valley State, 72-61, in early November. UWF then fell in consecutive road games at Georgia Southwestern and Spring Hill before hosting Columbus State in a loss on Nov. 26. West Florida closed the nonconference slate with a 100-95 double-overtime loss to Georgia Southwestern on Nov. 30. The Argos opened conference action with a pair of road losses to West Alabama and No. 14 Alabama Huntsville in early December before dropping a meeting with Valdosta State, 90-88, on Dec. 15. West Florida picked up its first conference win with a 63-60 victory over Lee in Pensacola, Fla. The Argos then dropped a meeting with Trevecca Nazarene on Dec. 21 before rebounding with a 77-73 road win over Delta State. UWF added a 74-69 road win over Mississippi College on Jan. 4 before falling to Christian Brothers, 59-55, on Jan. 9. Most recently, West Florida dropped a game to Union, 82-78, on Jan. 11.
 
West Florida averages 70.7 points per game on a 44.1-percent team shooting percentage and a 33.3-percent clip from long range. On the glass, the Argos average 35.3 rebounds with an average of 10.2 offensive boards. West Florida ranks third in the conference with 3.53 blocks per game while recording 6.93 steals while holding its opponents to just 76.2 points per game.
 
Shay Davis leads the team at 13.3 points per game on a 45.2-percent mark from the field and a 39.0-percent clip from three-point range while Xavier Glenn ranks second on the team with 10.9 points per game. Xavier shoots 48.3 percent from the floor. Ja'Ron Briggs Jr. leads the team on the glass with an average of 5.8 rebounds per game while scoring 7.3 points per game on 42.6-percent shooting.
 
Series History Against West Florida:
The Falcons lead the all-time series against the Argonauts with a 30-18 record since January 1998. Since rejoining the GSC, Montevallo is 7-9 against West Florida with the Falcons dropping the initial two meetings in 2017 and 2018. A season ago, the two sides split the matchups with Montevallo taking the most recent meeting, 91-83, on Feb. 24, 2024.