CARROLLTON, Ga. - A big second half lead turned into a close finish in The Coliseum on Saturday, but in the end, it was the West Georgia Wolves men's basketball team that got the win, bouncing back in a big way to defeat their archival Valdosta State, 93-88 in the second of two meetings in 2022-23.
West Georgia shot 53.1% from the field, 54.5% from three, and outrebounded Valdosta State by eight, propelling the Wolves to their 13th conference win of the season.
"Well I thought we were really good in the first half defensively, limiting them the best that we could," said head coach Dave Moore. "In the second half, we got the big lead and then it got tough. They starting making tough shots, making eight threes on a high percentage, but we were able to hang on. Give them credit because they made shots to comeback but our guys were tough enough to win at the end."
Zawdie Jackson got the Wolves going, scoring six of the Wolves first nine points, but it was Michael Zabetakis' second field goal of the game that moved him from third to second on the all-time career scoring list at UWG. It moved Zabetakis past Tim Criswell who was in attendance as part of the UWG Basketball Alumni Reunion.
After West Georgia and Valdosta State traded baskets early in the game, the Wolves went on a 16-4 run, fueled by seven points from sixth-man J.J. Barnes. That flipped a two-point lead at the midway point of the half to a 34-18 advantage with 5:45 left in the half.
Valdosta State would eventually stop the West Georgia momentum, and cut the Wolves' lead to just nine by the break. Jackson finished the half with 12 points, while Barnes got nine off the bench to help UWG lead 40-31 at halftime.
The second half began with Zabetakis and Amari Davis hooking up to power the Wolves to a 52-36 advantage and forcing a VSU timeout early in the half. Down but not out, the Blazers battled back and made what was once a 24-point UWG lead midway through the half and got it to a 10-point spread, forcing a UWG timeout with 4:53 remaining. The Blazers continued to chip away, eventually getting within three points at 87-84 at the 1:49 mark.
Valdosta State was forced to play the foul game and West Georgia converted six-of-eight at the charity stripe over the final 1:04 to close out the Blazers and complete the regular season sweep of the rival Blazers.
Jackson finished with a game-high 28 points, five rebounds, and four assists while Zabetakis recorded 20 points, eight assists, and six rebounds.
"I'm happy with the win," coach Moore added. "Anytime you play Valdosta State, It's really hard."
West Georgia will be back in action on Wednesday when they welcome the Auburn Montgomery Warhawks for a midweek GSC matchup in The Coliseum.
