PENSACOLA, Fla. – UWF men's basketball got back on the winning track with a 77-55 win over LaGrange College Sunday at the UWF Field House. Jon Brown netted a career-best 23 points, Henri Ventoniemi posted a double-double, and four Argos scored in double figures.
 
"I thought we had some stretches where we played well, and some stretches where we need to play better," said UWF head coach Jeff Burkhamer. "We're still a work in progress. We've still got a lot of things we need to work on, a lot of things to get better at. But we did have some bright spots."
 
The Argos were led by Jarrett Henderson and Brett Carter Jr. in the first half. Henderson piled up 11 points, two rebounds, one block and one steal in 15 minutes off the bench. Carter Jr. also came off the bench to notch 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting from the field and 3-of-3 shooting from deep. Henderson would finish with 11 points, and Carter Jr. finished with 14.
 
"Brett Carter probably had his best game here. He made some shots," Burkhamer said. "I thought Henderson gave us some energy off the bench. I thought he did a good job of coming in and being really active, which is what we need from him."
 
Leading 28-24 with 4:41 remaining in the first, the Argos reeled off an 11-0 run to close the period. The UWF defense proved to be stifling, forcing 20 Panther turnovers in the opening half. Rashaan Benson recorded four steals in the game's first 20 minutes to surpass former teammate DJ Thorpe for second place on the Argos all-time career steals list.
 
UWF played outstanding defense all game. The team helped to force 30 Panther turnovers and recorded 17 steals. Both were season-highs. Benson finished with six steals, a personal season-high. He now stands at 133 for his UWF career, just six behind all-time program record holder Deondre Boynton.
 
Brown scored 20 of his 23 points in the second half to help the Argos lead comfortably in the game's closing minutes. The redshirt freshman shot a very efficient 7-of-13 (.538) from the field, 2-of-4 (.500) from deep and 7-of-10 (.700) from the line. He also added five rebounds and two assists.
 
"Jon Brown was terrific," said Burkhamer. "He had a great game at both ends of the floor, played really hard, scored the ball, made some shots."
 
Ventoniemi posted 10 points and 12 boards, six on the offensive end and six on the defensive end. The senior post player also dished four assists and recorded two steals. The double-double was his first of the season.
 
"I thought Ventoniemi in the second half really defended better in the last ten minutes and caused their big kid some problems," said Burkhamer.
 
The Panthers (6-5, 2-1 USAS) were led by Jalen McCallum, who scored 10 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
 
The win snapped a six-game losing skid for the Argos (4-8, 0-4 GSC), who return to action at GSC rival Valdosta State (10-2, 3-1 GSC) Jan. 3. Tip is slated for 8:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. CT. The Argos will be back at home Jan. 5 vs. Montevallo for the first of five games next month in the Field House.
 
"Valdosta's the best team in the league right now," said Burkhamer. "They're 10-1, leading the league in scoring. We're the only team to beat them twice last year, so I'm sure they'll remember that. They're very good at home. It'll be a big challenge."
 
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