AMERICUS, Ga. – The Auburn University at Montgomery Warhawks men's basketball team (1-4) led the Florida Tech Panthers (1-4) with less than three minutes to go, but in the end, it was the Panthers who rallied to earn an 83-79 victory in a non-conference game Tuesday night at The Storm Dome on the campus of Georgia Southwestern.

AUM was down by as many as 16 points with just under eight minutes to go before the Warhawks went on a 16-0 run to tie the game. The Warhawks later held a slim 72-71 advantage, but Florida Tech came back itself, scoring seven straight points to retake the lead and ultimately win the game.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The teams went back-and-forth in the opening five minutes before Noah Van Bibber made a layup to give the Panthers a 9-8 lead with 14:15 to go in the first half. That basket sparked a 14-3 run for Florida Tech, allowing the Panthers to build a 21-11 lead with 10:54 left before halftime.

The Warhawks scored six straight points to close to within 21-17 after two free throws by Ti'Avian Scruggs with nine minutes left, but Florida Tech went on a 5-0 run to extend its lead to 26-17. However, AUM responded again with an 8-2 bust of its own, closing the Panther lead to 28-25 after a 3-pointer by Devin Barksdale with 5:19 remaining in the half.

Florida Tech closed the half strong, outscoring AUM, 16-10, over the final five-plus minutes to stretch its lead to 44-35 at halftime.

AUM made 13 of its 32 shots (40.6 percent) overall, hitting 7 of its 18 3-point shots (38.9 percent) in the first half. The Warhawks had 17 rebounds (compared to 23 for Florida Tech) and six turnovers (to the Panthers' three). AUM was led in scoring by Barksdale, who had 10 points, and Ogbale-Ndiaye added nine.

Florida Tech went 15-for-35 (42.9 percent) from the field, including 7-for-18 (38.9 percent) from 3-point range. Van Bibber had a game-high 13 points to lead the Panthers, followed by three players – Xavier Ford-Belton, Ty Harpring, and Logan Allen – with six points apiece.

Second Half
AUM scored the first five points of the second half, trimming the Florida Tech lead to 44-40 after a layup by Colby Williams with exactly 19 minutes to go. The Panthers re-took control with an 8-2 run to go back up 52-42, but Scruggs drained another trey to make it 52-45 with 15:16 still left in the game.

Florida Tech kept the Warhawks at arm's length during the middle portion of the second half before AUM made a big push to cut into the Panthers' lead. A 3-pointer from Barksdale tied the game at 69 with 4:11 remaining and capped a 16-0 run by the Warhawks over a span of 3:40.

Barksdale's two free throws put AUM ahead, 72-71, with 2:56 to go, but Ca'Darrius Sowell hit a pull-up jumper on the Panthers' next possession to put Florida Tech back in front, 73-72. Back-to-back misses by AUM – along with baskets by the Panthers – then helped put Florida Tech ahead, 78-72, with 1:24 left. The Warhawks got no closer than three points the rest of the way, that coming at 82-79 after a 3-pointer by Barksdale with 1 second to go.

NOTABLES
- AUM finished the game 28-for-68 (41.2 percent) from the field, hitting 13 of its 37 3-point shots (35.1 percent). The Warhawks also made 10-of-14 (71.4 percent) from the free-throw line. Florida Tech won the rebounding battle, 41-39, and AUM had 13 turnovers (leading to 22 Florida Tech points) to the Panthers' nine (leading to 12 Warhawk points).
- Barksdale scored 24 points, grabbed three rebounds and had two steals to lead the AUM offense. Chappelle Whitney added 11 points and six rebounds, and Canery pitched in 10 points, five rebounds and two assists for the Warhawks, who had six players finish with eight or more points.
- Florida Tech went 30-for-67 (44.8 percent) overall, including 11-for-32 (34.4 percent) from 3-point range. The Panthers also made 12 of their 20 free throws (60 percent) in the game.
- Sowell was the Panthers' leading scorer with 14 points and six rebounds. Van Bibben and Harpring had 13 apiece and Ford-Belton had a double-double for Florida Tech with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

UP NEXT
AUM returns home to the AUM Athletics Complex to take on Shorter University in a non-conference matchup. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT and the game will be an End of Semester Celebration, along with a Shoe Drive for YMCA. If you can't come out to support the Warhawks in person, the game will be streamed live on FloCollege. 

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