PENSACOLA, Fla. – UWF men's basketball (24-3, 16-3 GSC) wrapped its regular season home schedule with a 72-60 win over the Union Bulldogs (12-15, 6-13 GSC) Saturday in the UWF Field House. Five Argos finished in double figures. The day included a postgame ceremony to honor the squad's four seniors: Darryl Tucker, DJ Thorpe, Moter Deng and Marvin Jones.
The No. 16 Argos built a 36-22 lead at half behind nine points from Jones and eight points from Henri Ventoniemi. Tucker added six points. UWF shot 15 of 31 (.484) from the field and 3 of 9 (.333) from deep in the first. The defense limited the Bulldogs to 8 of 23 (.348) shooting from the field and 3 of 11 (.273) shooting from beyond the arc.
Rashaan Benson proved to be the key player for the Argos in the second. He scored 12 of his 14 points in the final 20 minutes. The junior point guard also passed out two assists and snared one steal in the second half. Union was able to cut the deficit to 60-56 with 3:39 to go on a three by Tyree Boykin. But Benson proved the hero, scoring the next eight points to open a healthier lead.
Jones narrowly missed a double-double, scoring 13 points and grabbing nine boards. Tucker finished the afternoon with 16 points and eight rebounds. Benson accumulated seven total assists in addition to his 14 points. Ventoniemi finished with 13 points and four rebounds. Moter Deng scored 10 points while also recording five rebounds, two assists and one block.
No. 16 UWF shot 28 of 57 (.491) from the field overall. Union shot 22 of 51 (.431) from the field. The Bulldogs were led by Boykin, who scored 28 points.
West Florida has clinched the second seed in the GSC Tournament and will host a postseason home game Feb. 27. The team closes the regular season at Valdosta State (25-2, 18-1 GSC) Thursday. Tip vs. the Blazers, who have clinched the regular season conference title, is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. CT.
The NCAA has selected the basketball doubleheader between West Florida and Valdosta State on Thursday, February 22 as a Division II Showcase Game. The contests will stream live from Valdosta on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app.
For the latest information on the No. 16 Argos, follow the team on Twitter @UWFMensBBall.
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