FORT VALLEY, Ga. – The Wildcats did not let another one slip away. Fort Valley State claimed the final five minutes and earned the men’s basketball victory, 64-56, over Central State Monday night.
Trailing 51-46 with 5:43 remaining, the Wildcats received a deep-corner Davon Cottle 3-pointer and a Jamal Reynolds driving layup to tie the game in exactly the next minute. The FVSU run continued with a pair of K.J. Doucet free throws, a left-wing Tyler Pendergrass triple and a Jamarcus Scott ball fake and 15-foot jumper in the lane to surge ahead, 58-51, with 2:14 on the clock. Central State answered with its own 3-pointer, but it was unable to get any closer in the final two minutes.
Doucet guided the FVSU attack with 17 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals. Pierre Mitchell added 14 points on 5 for 11 shooting to go with three assists and four steals.
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The Wildcats received points from 11 players on their roster. Scott led with seven off the bench with four coming in the final two minutes, including the final breakaway layup with eight seconds.
Kameron Ivory produced the top Marauders total with 14 points.
Tied at 2, FVSU pounced on Central State with the next 13 points and opened a 15-2 advantage only 5:12 into the contest. The Wildcats still led by nine points, 32-23, before the Marauders cut the margin down to three, 32-29, by intermission.
FVSU held the lead for the first 24:32 before an Ivory triple gave Central State its first lead, 40-38. Neither team led by more than three points for the next 10 minutes before the Central State five-point difference, 51`-46, proceeding the FVSU game-deciding run.
Courtesy: Fort Valley State Athletics
