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LIVINGSTON, Ala.
– The University of West Alabama men’s basketball team
earned a key Gulf South Conference win on Saturday,
knocking off in-state rival North Alabama, 76-74, at
Pruitt Hall.
The two-point win
over the Lions keeps the Tigers alive for a GSC
Tournament spot. UWA improved to 11-13 overall, 3-6 in
GSC East play. The setback by the Lions (16-9, 6-4 GSC)
drops them from a logged-jammed GSC East first-place
battle. UAH, Valdosta State and UNA all entered
Saturday’s action with identical 6-3 marks in the
conference. The Tigers halted a four-game losing streak
to their in-state nemesis.
The win also gave
UWA head coach Eddie McCarter his 200th
career win. McCarter, in his second season at UWA,
recorded 179 wins in 14 seasons at the University of
Texas at Arlington. He becomes the seventh current GSC
coach to reach the 200 win plateau.
UWA rode the
shoulders of junior forward Jason Swanson, who claimed
game-high scoring honors with 25 points in 36 minutes of
action. The Troy, Ala.-native registered his ninth
double-double of the season with 11 rebounds. Swanson
also dished out two assists and was credited with a pair
of steals.
In a tightly
contested affair from start to finish, neither team
accumulated a double-digit lead. The Lions led by six
points at the 11:49 mark of the opening period, while
the Tigers had an eight-point advantage with 9:28 left
in the game. UNA took a one point, 37-36, lead into the
halftime break, but the Red and White out-scored the
Lions 40-37 in the final half. UWA took its first lead
of the second half on a lay up from Brandon Hampton at
the 15:21 mark of the half at 44-43. The Tigers held
the edge the rest of the way, holding off multiple UNA
chances in the final moments of the game. UWA finished
the night shooting 58 percent from the floor and
20-of-32 from the charity stripe. The Tigers claimed
the rebounding battle, 43-24.
Hampton and
freshman Daniel Scott provided sparks off the bench for
UWA. Hampton poured in 12 points in the affair, while
Scott turned in eight points in 19 minutes of action.
Every player on the UWA squad was credited with points
in the win.
Andrew Chesney led
the Lions in scoring with 16 points.
UWA returns to the road on Thursday,
Feb. 19, trekking to Valdosta, Ga. to face Valdosta
State. Tip off is set for 6 p.m. CST. |
