PENSACOLA, Fla. – UWF men's basketball (17-1, 9-1 GSC) equaled the program record with its 19th consecutive home win in the UWF Field House Friday, downing West Georgia (8-9, 3-7 GSC) 88-86. UWF had five players score in double figures, and Moter Deng notched his third double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
"One of the things we talk to our team about is earning winning, and we found a way to earn the win tonight," said UWF head coach Jeff Burkhamer. "It's great to teach from a win, and I'm glad we're able to teach from a win instead of a tough loss because at the end of the day it's still going to go in the W column, but we do have to play better. We've got to get better efforts and better work out of some guys."
The No. 10 Argos began the game hot, starting on an 11-0 run. The team did not allow the Wolves a field goal for almost the first five minutes. Henri Ventoniemi led the squad with 12 points and three boards on 6-6 FG shooting in the first as the Argos built a 48-38 lead. Deng finished 4 of 7 from the field in the first, piling up 11 points and five rebounds. Marvin Jones added ten points and five rebounds in the opening half. The Argos shot .594 from the field in the first while limiting West Georgia to a .375 mark.
The Wolves refused to go quietly in the second. Behind strong play from Darryl Tucker, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the second, the Argos built an 84-76 advantage with 2:43 to play. UWG, one of the top offenses in the GSC, narrowed the gap to 86-85 before a pair of clutch Tucker free throws inflated the lead to 88-85 with seven seconds left. After a Jones foul, William Sides hit one free throw for the Wolves with two seconds left. He missed the second, and a Deng rebound sealed the win for UWF.
"I thought we started really well, and then I thought we relaxed a little bit after getting out to a big lead early," said Burkhamer. "They made it tough at the end. We made enough plays and enough free throws late and defended well enough late and got a big rebound to win the game."
DJ Thorpe equaled Deng for the team-high in points, scoring 15 while posting five assists and four steals. Ventoniemi matched his season-high with his 14 points. Tucker scored in double figures for the fourth straight game. West Georgia was led by Marquill Smith, who scored 27 while pulling in 13 rebounds.
The win helped the team etch its place on yet another line in the West Florida record book. The Argos equaled a record set by the 1967-1969 teams with the 19th straight win at home.
"It's a heck of a thing for our program and our team to have 19 straight home wins, to have a chance to reach another milestone of things we've accomplished since we got here two-and-a-half years ago," said Burkhamer. "Sunday will be a meaningful game, a game that we need to win for the year and for the region and the conference but also to try to set a milestone with our program."
UWF remains tied at the top of the GSC standings with Valdosta State. Both teams are 9-1. West Florida will take on Auburn Montgomery (7-10, 3-7 GSC) Sunday at 4:00 p.m. in the UWF Field House.
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