Men roll past Columbus 74-64, fall to Montevallo, drop into three way tie for second in PBC West

The playoff race in the Peach Belt Conference Western Division won’t be decided until the final day of the regular season, and the Georgia College men’s basketball team is right in the middle of it. The Bobcats (15-9, 9-7 PBC) saw their six-game winning streak come to an end on Feb. 23 as they fell to Montevallo 76-66, marking the second time the Falcons have gotten the better of them this season.

Redshirt senior forward Reece Wiedeman led the Bobcats in scoring with 17 points. Montevallo’s 9-0 run early in the second half, however, proved too much for them to overcome.

At the end of conference play on Feb. 23, the Bobcats and Falcons both join Clayton State, who lost at North Georgia, in a three-way tie for second place in the PBC West with 9-7 conference records. Currently, the Falcons own the tiebreaker over the Bobcats, having swept them in the regular season. The Bobcats split with Clayton State, and the Lakers also split with the Falcons. Whichever team comes out in second place will host a first round game in the conference tournament on March 1.

If the Bobcats beat North Georgia on the road on Feb. 26, they will have a shot at the No. 2 seed, provided that Montevallo loses at Columbus State. Clayton State travels to Georgia Southwestern, the No. 1 seed in the West on the same day and still has a shot at the second spot as well.

Despite the loss to Montevallo, the Bobcats are still in the position they’re in thanks to some crucial wins after a midseason slump.

“The guys are going out there and playing every game like it’s their last. They have a great sense of urgency about them,” Head Coach Terry Sellers said. “As long as we are getting the job done, it doesn’t matter who’s out there, and who’s doing it. We’ve got a lot of balance right now, and it’s showing results for us.”

“Early on, we had a lot of new guys who had to get used to things, but now lately we’ve been clicking and playing up to our potential,” sophomore guard JP Davis added.

Against Columbus State on Feb. 19, Georgia College rallied to win 74-64. Down 27-17 with 6:24 left in the half, the Bobcats began to make their comeback. Junior forward Ryan Aquino hit a 3-pointer and then after a Cougar turnover, laid one in to cut the deficit in half. Junior forward Jared Holmes followed with a 2-point jumper, and then another 3-pointer from Aquino tied the game at 27-27 with 4:16 left. The Bobcats then raced out to a 6-point lead after Holmes scored and hit a free throw after being fouled on the play, and junior forward Mike Augustine drained a three to make it 33-27 with 3:07 left.

After taking a 36-33 advantage into the locker room, Georgia College fell behind again when a 3-pointer from Jarmarquis Steverson gave the Cougars a 47-44 lead with 12:59 remaining. The Bobcats, however started a 10-0 run, tying the game a minute and

a half later with a layup by  Wiedeman and taking a 50-47 lead on a 3-pointer by redshirt sophomore guard Nate Hamilton.

Two more layups from Wiedeman stretched the lead to 54-47 with 9:38 left to play. The Bobcats remained at least 7 points ahead the rest of the way, eventually winning 74-64. Wiedeman finished with 23 points, while Hamilton had 12 off the bench.

“We really picked up our intensity on defense after falling behind and got going up and down the court,” Sellers said after the win against Columbus. “We made some great shots, and we forced them into some turnovers and poor decisions. It was a great effort from everyone on the team.”

Now the Bobcats are faced with their biggest game of the season.

“Every game is a big game now. There’s so much riding every time we step out on the court,” Hamilton said. “We’re looking forward to the challenge.”