MONTEVALLO, Ala. – Montevallo men's basketball is set for a second-round matchup against top seed Nova Southeastern on Sunday, March 15 at 6:30 p.m.
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Montevallo now holds a 22-8 overall record and a 17-5 mark in Gulf South Conference action which earned UM the No. 5 seed in the NCAA South Region Tournament. Montevallo posted a 4-2 mark in nonconference action to start the season with the Falcons dropping its first meeting with Nova Southeastern, 94-78, on Nov. 15, 2025. The Falcons posted a 4-2 record in December before opening the new year with an 89-62 win over Auburn Montgomery. Following a win over Alabama Huntsville, Montevallo dropped back-to-back meetings with West Alabama and Valdosta State. UM rattled off eight-straight wins from Jan. 17-Feb. 14 with wins over West Florida, Trevecca Nazarene, Lee, Mississippi College, Delta State, Union, Christian Brothers and AUM. Montevallo then fell to West Alabama, 66-54, on Feb. 19 before closing the regular season on a three-game streak after topping UAH, UWF, and Valdosta State. The Falcons took an early exit from the GSC tournament after falling to Lee, 69-65. On Saturday, March 14, Montevallo topped Florida Southern, 88-81, in the first round of the NCAA South Region Tournament for the Falcons' first tournament win since the 2011-12 season.
Montevallo averages 78.8 points per game on a 47.0-percent shooting mark while shooting 36.1 percent from deep and 74.8 percent from the line. On the boards, Montevallo pulls down 36.3 rebounds per game with an average of 8.9 offensive boards per game while adding an average of 15.0 assists per game for a 1.3 assist-to-turnover ratio. Defensively, Montevallo allows just 69.5 points per game with opponents shooting 40.4 percent from the floor and 30.3 percent from deep. The Falcons allow 35.1 rebounds per game while forcing 13.6 turnovers on an average of 9.1 steals per game.
The Gulf South Conference's Player of the Year
Derek Moore leads Montevallo with 18.2 points per game on a 62.0-percent shooting clip while also leading the team with 6.8 rebounds per game.
Brandon Fussell leads the squad with 5.4 assists and 2.1 steals while scoring 17.0 points on a 44.7-percent mark from the field.
Jaylen Curry scores 13.2 points per game with a 47.9-percent shooting mark while adding 5.3 rebounds per game. In the Falcons' first game in the tournament,
Derek Moore led the way with 21 points while Fussell scored 17 and Curry finished with 15.
Tyson Sexton and
Sam Duskin led the Falcons on the glass with eight rebounds each while Duskin scored 14 with 11 coming from Sexton.
The Sharks head into Sunday's matchup with a 28-1 overall record and a 19-1 mark in Sunshine State Conference action. NSU posted an 8-0 mark in nonconference action to start the season with a win over Montevallo among those. Nova Southeastern's lone loss of the season came on Dec. 13 in an 88-83 road loss at Palm Beach Atlantic. December saw a 5-1 record for NSU before the side opened 2026 with a 104-86 win over Florida Southern on Jan. 3. The rest of January saw a 7-0 record highlighted by a 52-point win over Saint Leo on Jan. 21. The Sharks closed the regular season with wins over Barry, Lynn, Florida Tech and Embry-Riddle before adding another trio of wins in the final week of February. After topping Rollins and Barry in the first two rounds of the SSC tournament, Nova Southeastern needed overtime to take down Palm Beach Atlantic, 92-85, for the 2026 SSC Championship. In the Sharks' opening round matchup with No. 8 seed Morehouse, NSU took a 94-60 win to move on to face Montevallo in the regional semifinal.
NSU averages 101.0 points per game on a 49.4-percent mark from the floor and a 36.9-percent clip from deep while shooting 72.8 percent from the line. The Sharks average a total of 42.8 rebounds per game with an average of 15.5 offensive rebounds per game. NSU dishes out an average of 19.4 assists per game with just 9.3 turnovers for a 2.1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Defensively, NSU allows just 77.0 points per game while their opponents shoot 43.0 percent from the floor and 31.5 percent from deep. The Sharks force an average of 19.6 turnovers per game on 12.1 steals to rank fifth in the nation.
Ross Reeves leads Nova Southeastern with 23.0 points per game on a 50.6-percent shooting mark while shooting 34.0 percent from deep to go along with 5.0 rebounds per game. South Region Player of the Year Dallas Graziani ranks second on the squad with 20.1 points per game with a 45.3-percent clip and a team-high 6.6 assists per game. Jaxon Nap ranks third on the team with 13.7 points while shooting 52.6 percent from the floor while adding a team-high 8.3 rebounds per game. Ryan Davis and Bennett Kayser round out the Sharks' double-digit scorers with 10.3 and 10.2 points per game, respectively.
