AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Virginia Union shot 54.5
percent for the game and escaped Christenberry Fieldhouse with a
70-68 victory over third-ranked Augusta State Saturday in a
non-conference matchup.
The Jaguars, who dropped to 3-1 on the season, got a game-high 23
points from junior guard Ben Madgen. Senior center Garret Siler had
18 points, while junior forward Fred Brathwaite added 11. Junior
forward Greg Hire booked his first double-double of the season with
a season-high 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Kyle Cook paced Virginia Union (4-3) with 17 points, while Gregg
Thondique and Brandon Byerson chipped in 12 and 11 points,
respectively.
With the victory, the Panthers avenged last season's
last-second loss to ASU at Barco-Stevens Hall in Richmond, Va.
The loss snapped an ASU nine-game home winning streak and a 14-game
non-conference home winning streak. The Jags' last
non-conference home loss was on Jan. 5, 2004, to West Georgia.
Virginia Union, which shot 60.7 percent in the second half, led
66-62 before a Siler basket with 2:56 to play got the Jags within
two. Brathwaite canned two free throws 30 seconds later to knot the
game at 66-all before the Panthers answered with a Brandon Byerson
layup on their next possession.
Hire hit a pair of free throws for a 68-all tie with 1:46 to play,
only to have Union's Devin Johnson score on a layup with 1:18
remaining for the eventual game-winner.
ASU kicks off its Peach Belt Conference schedule at home on Monday,
Dec. 15 with a doubleheader vs. Georgia College & State. Game
times are 5:30 and 7:30 p.m., respectively, for the Jaguar
women's and men's squads.