MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Auburn Montgomery men's basketball took a one-point lead into the final minute of play against #9 Valdosta State on Saturday afternoon, but a Morgan Winston 3-pointer with :30 seconds remaining lifted the Blazers to a 94-92 victory over AUM in Gulf South Conference play.
 
NOTES
• AUM drops to 9-16 on the season, with a 5-12 mark in GSC play.
• VSU improves to 23-2 and 16-1 in league action.
• The Warhawks are now 3-4 lifetime against the Blazers.
• AUM is 3-3 this season against nationally-ranked opponents.
 
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Senior center Jarett Croff recorded his third double-double of the season, scoring a team-high 21 points and pulling down a game-high 12 rebounds.
• Junior guard Kenneth Keith tallied 16 points, five assists, two rebounds and two steals for AUM.
• Junior guard Desmond DeRamus notched 15 points, four assists and four steals for the Warhawks.
• VSU's Beau Justice recorded a double-double as well, recording 21 points and 10 assists.
• Winston scored 18 for the Blazers, including six of their last nine points.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Croff established himself in the paint early in the contest, scoring eight of AUM's first 10 points, but the Blazers came out strong and took a 19-10 lead with 14:09 to play in the first.
• AUM would battle back and senior guard Reagan Eubanks would nail a trey with 8:57 left to go until the half to cut the VSU advantage to 29-25.
• Sophomore guard Darrion Taylor would tie the game at 31-31 moments later with a jumper, only to have the Blazers retake the lead shortly after.
• DeRamus would give AUM a 39-38 lead with 4:34 to go in the first on a layup, but VSU would finish the half on a 13-7 run to take a 51-46 advantage into the break.
• The two teams would trade buckets back and forth to open the second half before Winston gave the Blazers its largest lead of the frame on a 3-pointer from the corner, giving his team a 61-52 lead with 17:08 to play.
• AUM would go on a 16-7 run over the next six minutes as a DeRamus 3-pointer gave the Warhawks a 69-68 lead with 11:48 on the clock.
• A Keith trey would give the Warhawks a 92-85 advantage with 3:43 to play, but the Blazers would go on a 9-0 run to finish out the contest and earn the 2-point victory.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
• Both teams recorded 38 rebounds.
• AUM outscored VSU 50-30 in the paint.
• VSU connected on 19 3-pointers while AUM hit nine.
 
UP NEXT
The Warhawks return to Gulf South Conference play on Wednesday when they travel to Florence, Ala., to take on North Alabama. Opening tip is set from 8 p.m. on the campus of the Lions.
 
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