Box Score

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Tarik Mckelphin and Wendell Matthews each had 18 points, but Valdosta State proved to be too much late in the contest as the Blazers won 84-76, on Friday night inside the UWF Field House.

The loss drops West Florida to 7-11 on the year while VSU moves to 13-4.

Both Mckelphin and Matthews were efficient from the floor as Matthews went 7-17 while Mckelphin was 6-11.  Matthews added eight rebounds with Mckelphin chipping in six boards.  Brett Carter Jr. had 13 points on 3-5 from beyond the arc for UWF.

Early on, West Florida was in control as they held an 11 point-lead midway through the opening period after a three from Daniel Sofield.  The was the largest lead of the game for the Argos as VSU consistently chipped away into the lead.  A Carter Jr. three-pointer would give the Argonauts an eight-point lead with 2:30 to go, but the Blazers would come back to make it a five-point game at the break.  Carter Jr. led all scorers with 11 points in the first period as UWF led 41-36.

West Florida would lead by six points at three different times in the second half before VSU would regain the lead at 54-53, following a dunk by Jacolbey Owens.  It was the first lead for the Blazers, since the opening minute when it was 1-0.  Following the dunk, there was nearly a 10-minute stretch where neither team led by more than four points as the lead changed hands multiple times.

UWF would take their final advantage on a jumper by guard Cameron Cox at the 3:47 mark to make it 75-72.  VSU would go on a 12-1 run to finish the game, with Imoras Agee and Cam Hamilton scoring the final 12 points for Valdosta State.  Agee led all scorers with 24 points in the contest.

For the game, West Florida outshot VSU, 47.5 to 46.3 percent.  The Blazers scored 24 points off 17 UWF turnovers, while UWF also could not capitalize from the charity stripe, shooting 12-25 for the contest.

The Argonauts will close out the regular season tomorrow afternoon as they host VSU.  Tip-off from the UWF Field House is scheduled for 3 p.m.  West Florida will recognize its three seniors on senior day in Mckelphin, Carter Jr. and Cox.

For the latest on the UWF Men's Basketball Team, please visit GoArgos.com or follow the team on Twitter @UWFMensBBall.