MONTEVALLO, Ala. – Montevallo men's basketball returns from a two-game road trip to host Mississippi College and Delta State.
 
So Far This Season…
Montevallo heads into the weekend as the fourth-ranked team in the Gulf South Conference standings with an 8-5 conference record and a 12-7 overall mark. Montevallo opened the season with a 1-1 record after topping Barry on Nov. 8 and falling to No. 2 Nova Southeastern on Nov. 9. The Falcons added three-straight wins in the non-conference slate after beating Spring Hill on the road, Point and Carolina Christian. In the Falcons' final non-conference game, Montevallo fell to Cumberland on Nov. 24. Montevallo opened the GSC schedule with wins over Lee and Trevecca in early December. The Falcons then added an 89-81 win over Delta State before topping Mississippi College, 70-58, on Dec. 14. Montevallo closed the 2024 calendar year with a pair of wins over Christian Brothers and Union. Montevallo dropped its first game of 2025 to Auburn Montgomery, 93-85, on Jan. 4 before falling to No. 6 Alabama Huntsville on the road. Montevallo ended the streak with an 83-73 road win over West Alabama on Jan. 11. The Falcons ended the three-game road trip with a loss to Valdosta State on Jan. 16 before falling to West Florida on Jan. 18. On Jan. 23, Montevallo fell on the road to Trevecca, 89-69, before defeating Lee, 58-50, on Jan. 25 for the Falcons' most recent outing.
 
Montevallo ranks fifth in the GSC with an average of 78.6 points per game on a 45.9-percent shooting clip for the team while also shooting 33.2 percent from long range and 73.9 percent from the charity stripe. On the glass, Montevallo records 35.6 rebounds per game with an average of 10.9 offensive rebounds per contest while allowing just 34.1 rebounds per game to opponents. Defensively, Montevallo forces 13.8 turnovers per game on an average of 8.3 steals per game while adding 1.95 blocks per game.
 
Individually, the Falcons are led by Brandon Fussell who ranks ninth in the GSC with an average of 17.1 points per game on a 48-percent shooting mark and an 82.8-percent clip from the free-throw line. The sophomore also leads the team with 3.52 assists per game while also adding 3.1 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game. Jaylen Curry ranks second on the squad with 16.2 points per game on 45.4 percent from the floor while leading the team with 6.3 rebounds per game. Derek Moore is the final Falcon to average double-digit scoring numbers at 13.2 points per game on an impressive 56.4-percent shooting while also grabbing 5.8 rebounds per game.
 
Scouting Mississippi College: WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
MC enters Thursday's contest with a 7-12 overall record and a 3-10 mark in conference play after opening the season with a trio of wins over Central State, Albany State, and Millsaps in early November. The Choctaws suffered the first loss of the season against East Central on Nov. 16 before falling to No. 8 Dallas Baptist on Nov. 23. The Choctaws closed the non-conference schedule with an 82-77 win over Arkansas Baptist. MC opened the conference slate with a Dec. 5 win over Christian Brothers before falling to Union on Dec. 7. The Choctaws fell to the Falcons on Dec. 14 before adding a 70-62 win over AUM to the record. MC then dropped road meetings to No. 13 UAH and West Alabama before hosting No. 25 Valdosta State in a 96-74 loss. Following a loss to West Florida, MC went on the road for a 64-56 loss to Lee on Jan. 9 and an 89-77 loss to Trevecca on Jan. 13. On Jan. 18, MC fell to Delta State, 62-54, before dropping a matchup with Union on Jan. 23. Most recently, Mississippi College defeated Christian Brothers, 65-53, on Jan. 25.
 
As a team, MC averages 65.3 points per game on a 41.3-percent shooting clip and a 31.4-percent clip from long range with the Choctaws shooting 77.2 percent from the free-throw line. On the boards, MC averages 30.9 rebounds per game with 7.7 rebounds per game coming off the offensive glass. Defensively, Mississippi College forces 11.6 turnovers per game on an average of 5.89 steals with 2.68 blocks per game.
 
Individually, MC is led by Rashad Bolden who has proven to be the GSC's top scorer with an average of 25.0 points per game on 39.8 percent from the floor and 38.0 percent from three-point range. JJ Harris leads MC on the glass with an average of 5.8 rebounds per game while scoring 9.5 points per game. Tyshun Briscoe ranks second on the squad with an average of 9.9 points per game on 38.2-percent shooting and 83.5 percent from the charity stripe.
 
Series History Against MC:
Montevallo leads the series against MC with a 7-5 overall record since the series began in 1993. Since Montevallo rejoined the GSC, the Falcons are 6-4 against the Choctaws with wins in 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2024. A season ago, Montevallo topped MC 78-66 at home after falling to the Choctaws, 100-96, on the road earlier in the season. Most recently, Montevallo topped MC, 70-58, on Dec. 14, 2024.
 
Scouting Delta State: WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS
Delta State enters the weekend with a 9-10 overall record and a 5-8 mark in GSC action after opening the season with back-to-back wins over LeMoyne-Owen. The Statesmen added a 104-77 win over Lane before falling to Kentucky Wesleyan and Ouachita Baptist in mid-November. Delta State closed the nonconference schedule with a 79-63 win over Arkansas Monticello on Nov. 26. To open conference play, the Statesmen dropped a meeting with Union on Dec. 5 before topping Christian Brothers, 89-75, on Dec. 7. On Dec. 12, Montevallo topped the Statesmen, 89-81, before DSU defeated AUM, 92-80, on Dec. 14. Delta State closed 2024 with a pair of road losses at West Alabama and Alabama Huntsville. The Statesmen opened the new year with a 77-73 loss to West Florida on Jan. 2 before falling to Valdosta State, 100-92, on Jan. 4. In a road trip to Tennessee, DSU lost to Trevecca, 99-88, on Jan. 9 before dropping a meeting with Lee on Jan. 12. On Jan. 18, Delta State kicked off a three-game winning streak with a 62-54 win over MC on Jan. 18 before adding an 87-69 win over Christian Brothers on Jan. 23. Most recently, Delta State defeated Union, 69-59, on Jan. 25.
 
Delta State ranks fourth in the conference with an average of 79.1 points per game on 42.3-percent shooting with a 30.9-percent clip from long range and 77.9-percent mark from the charity stripe. The Statesmen average just 28.3 rebounds per game with 11.2 rebounds coming on the offensive glass while allowing opponents 37.7 rebounds per game. Defensively, Delta State leads the conference in turnover margin at 7.58 with just 11.1 turnovers from DSU while forcing 18.6 turnovers from opponents on an average of 10.32 steals per game.
 
Chris Terrell leads the team with an average of 20.9 points per game on 47.5-percent from the floor and 37.6 percent from long range while averaging 3.8 rebounds per game and 3.6 assists per game. Keithean Brooks ranks second on the squad with 20.5 points per game on 41.7 percent from the floor and 84.9 percent from the charity stripe. Kolby Horace leads the team on the glass with an average of 4.1 rebounds per game while scoring 12.3 points per game on 46.2-percent shooting.
 
Series History Against DSU:
Historically, Delta State controls the series between these two sides with a 15-7 overall record since the series began during the 1983-84 season. Since rejoining the GSC following the 2016-17 season, Montevallo is 7-6 against the Statesmen with the Falcons going 4-2 in central Alabama and 3-4 on the road at Delta State. Most recently, Montevallo defeated Delta State, 89-81, on the road on Dec. 12, 2024.