Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

UWG Wolves | Athletic Programs | Official Athletics Site

Scoreboard

Schedule

Official Website of the UWG Wolves
MG
70
Austin Peay APSU 13-18,8-10 ASUN
73
Winner West Ga. UWG 6-25,4-14 ASUN
Austin Peay APSU
13-18,8-10 ASUN
70
Final
73
West Ga. UWG
6-25,4-14 ASUN
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Austin Peay APSU 38 32 70
West Ga. UWG 35 38 73

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Danny Talbert

UWG Men's Basketball Caps Season with Senior Day Win

CARROLLTON, Ga. - West Georgia men's basketball sent its seniors off in style with a 73-70 victory over Austin Peay at The Coliseum tonight. 

Clutch free throws, an incredible late block by Tamaury Releford and solid production by the UWG senior class pushed the Wolves (6-25, 4-14 ASUN) past conference foe Austin Peay (13-16, 7-11 ASUN). 

Leading the charge tonight for UWG with 21 points was junior forward Shelton Williams-Dryden. Following Williams-Dryden, seniors Kolten Griffin and Tamaury Releford posted 13 points and three other Wolves scored seven, including senior guard Michael Griffin. Releford also grabbed a team-high 11 blocks, officially securing his first double-double of the season.

APSU was led by junior guard LJ Thomas with 21 points. Behind Thomas, freshman guard Tate McCubbin dropped 13 and four other Governors scored eight.

Following the victory, head coach Dave Moore talked about tonight's game, stating, "Tonight's win feels great, especially for the seniors. It's even better because they were in there making plays to help us win. It was a team win. We went 11-for-11 in the second half from the foul line, that's winning basketball. It was just a really good team effort and I'm so happy that the guys got to finish out on a win."

Despite opening the game shooting 29 percent from the field while going 0-3 from three, the Wolves managed to stay within one by the first media timeout.

With UWG continuing to struggle with shooting, APSU extended their advantage to 16-9 by the 12-minute mark.

Within two minutes of play, the Wolves dashed the visitors' lead to 19-17 with senior center Tamaury Releford pushing the pace with seven points.

Following the eight-minute media timeout, both teams' offenses began to attack with a high-intensity style of play.

Alongside Releford, strong contributions from guards Kolten Griffin and Demetrus Johnson II allowed UWG to tie the game 32-32 with two minutes left in the half. 

Heading into the break, the Wolves trailed 38-35 with Releford posting a team-high 13 points. LJ Thomas led the visitors with 11. 

Even with Shelton Williams-Dryden's rapid nine-point surge in the second half's opening six minutes, Austin Peay managed to create separation from West Georgia to start the period.

A sudden cold spell for Austin Peay, coupled with UWG finding their groove, allowed the Wolves to claw back from a 62-52 deficit and bring the score to 64-62 with five minutes on the clock.

Emerging from the final media timeout, Kolten Griffin delivered a pivotal basket to give the Wolves a tight 69-68 lead with under three minutes remaining in the game. This marked the first UWG advantage since the Wolves led 26-25 in the first half.

With the two teams trading leads back and forth, solid free throw shooting and a big-time block by Releford put the nail in APSU's coffin.

UWG held on to win 73-70 in the final game of the season.

As noted, Williams-Dryden posted a team-high 21 points while shooting 38 percent from the field and a clutch 11-for-12 from the line.(92%). This marked the 28th time he scored double-digits and the 14th time he scored more than 20 points this season.

All three UWG seniors who were honored tonight closed out their careers at West Georgia with stellar showings. Releford secured his first double-double of the year after knocking down 13 points and grabbing a team-high 11 rebounds. He also made a last-minute block that ultimately helped the Wolves win. Speaking of blocks, Michael Griffin matched his career-highs in both blocks and points tonight, recording three blocks and seven scores. Alongside Releford with 13 points was Kolten Griffin. The senior leader also pulled down seven rebounds and forced APSU to make multiple bad passes due to his smothering defense.

"These seniors have seen it all. They went from the top of the mountain to the bottom of the league," said coach Moore. "Tonight, showed you who those three guys are. They are character guys. They don't stop playing hard. They don't care about what the record says. They are worried about the opportunity they have in front of them and the things that they can control. These guys have helped us win two championships and go to two NCAA Tournaments. They helped us put this program back on the map. This year, they helped us make this transition to Division I. It's a big time challenge and those guys have been consistent everyday." 

Tonight's game marks the ending of West Georgia men's basketball's inaugural Division I season. 

With the first ever Division I season now over for UWG men's basketball, coach Moore briefly talked about what it is going to take to continue to build the program in this new landscape, stating, "We never had to deal with NIL or cost of attendance when we were in DII winning championships. None of that was a part of the equation and now all of that is a part of the equation. Division I athletics is a big time business. Division I basketball is a billion dollar business. We have to have the support of the community. We need the businesses here to support us. That will move the needle forward. Not just men's basketball, but our whole athletics. The sky is the limit for this athletic department if we get that support. The athletic department and the men's basketball team are sleeping giants right here in Carrollton, Georgia."
 
Print Friendly Version