ROME, Ga. – Trailing 61-59 with :16 seconds to play, redshirt junior guard Jarvis Johnson connected on a 3-pointer to give Auburn Montgomery a 62-61 advantage before fellow guard Kenneth Keith connected on 4-4 free throw attempts down the stretch to give the Warhawks a 66-61 victory over Shorter University on Saturday afternoon. The win marked the first Gulf South Conference victory in school history for men's basketball.
 
NOTES
• AUM improves to 4-4 on the season and 1-1 in league play, while the Hawks fall to 1-8 overall and 1-1 in the GSC.
• The win snapped a two game losing skid for the Warhawks.
• Today's game was the first meeting between the two schools since the 2011-12 season, a 65-49 victory for Shorter.
 
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Junior guard Desmond DeRamus scored a team-high 23 points, along with eight rebounds, four steals and three assists.
• Sophomore guard Darrion Taylor tallied 16 points and one steal.
• Keith scored 10 and recorded two assists and two steals.
• Shorter's Josh Burnett scored a game-high 24 points and pulled down a game-best nine rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED 
• The two teams battled to an early 8-8 tie as Taylor hit a pair of threes to start the contest. Shorter would go up 13-8 before Keith hit a trey with 9:35 to play in the first half to put AUM up 15-13.
• A back and forth battle saw DeRamus tie the game at 19-19 with 6:59 to play on a jumper in the paint.
• AUM would go on a 12-2 run over the next four minutes, only to see Shorter pull to within 33-28 to close out the half.
• DeRamus would put the Warhawks up 38-32 with 17:10 to go in the contest, before Burnett would tie the game up with a layup at 38-38 with a fastbreak layup. Shorter would then gain a 39-38 advantage on a free throw with 15:42 to go.
• Once again AUM and the Hawks would trade the lead back and forth until DeRamus would hit an acrobatic layup at the 8:32 mark to tie the game at 47-47.
• Burnett would put the Hawks up 61-59 with 1:13 to play on a trey from the wing. It was then that AUM suffered a turnover with :50 seconds to play. A turnover by Shorter with :30 left gave the Warhawks the ball and set up Johnson's heroics. DeRamus drove to the basket then kicked it out to the top of the key and Johnson sank the go-ahead three.
• Keith would force a steal, convert on free throws after being fouled with :08 left, then the Hawks would commit another turnover and Keith would control, only to be fouled again. AUM tallied seven consecutive points in the final :16 seconds to earn the 66-61 victory.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE 
• Shorter outscored AUM 26-24 in the paint.
• The Warhawks' bench outscored the Hawks' bench 25-2.
• AUM out-rebounded Shorter 32-31.
 
UP NEXT
AUM will next be in action on Wednesday, Dec. 13, when the Warhawks travel to Spring Hill College to take on the Badgers in non-conference play. Opening tip is set for 7 p.m. on the campus of the Badgers.
 
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