JACKSON, Tenn. – Union falls to the #16 University of West Georgia 78-66. Union’s record drops to 3-4 (0-3 GSC). #16 West Georgia’s record improves to 7-0 (3-0 GSC).
First Half: #16 West Georgia 42, Union 34
Zawdie Jackson gets the scoring going with a three-pointer. Justin Debuck responds with a three-pointer of his own. Freshman Jordan Pyke hits a mid-range jumper to tie the game at 5-5. With 16:50 left in the first half Parker Applegate recorded his first steal, leading to Ahmad Johnson’s first points of the game evening the score at 7-7. Pyke and Debuck connect on an alley-oop, collecting momentum in favor of the Bulldogs. Tamaury Releford granted the Wolves a four-point lead, instantly answered by a Justin Debuck three-pointer. Jordan Pyke gets a layup to fall to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the game 16-15. Jordan Pyke pushed his point total to nine with a three-pointer, 12 minutes remaining in the half.
Jordan Pyke continues to impress, stretching the Union lead to five following the completion of an and-one play. Jeremiah Littlepage gets in on the scoring, converting off an offensive rebound (24-18). Marlon Smith cut the Union lead down to three with a layup, 8:28 remaining in the half. Jeremiah Littlepage makes both of his free throw opportunities, extending the Bulldog lead to five. The Wolves’ Zawdie Jackson cut the lead back down to one point. In transition Jordan Pyke recovered a Debuck missed jumper and put it back up for the basket. Union led 28-25 with 6:26 left on the clock.
Union continues to work on the offensive glass as Parker Applegate puts another offensive rebound back into the basket. The Wolves retook the lead with 4:53 remaining in the first half. Applegate was able to put the Bulldogs back in front on a layup, followed by an Ahmad Johnson mid-range jumper to even the score at 34-34. West Georgia takes the lead of a flagrant foul committed by Union, leading late in the first half 36-34. West Georgia extends the lead to six following a fast break dunk. West Georgia finished the half on an 11-0 scoring run, extending the lead to 42-34
Halftime Stats
Jordan Pyke: 14 points, 1 assist, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
Justin Debuck: 6 points, 1 assist, 1 rebound
Ahmad Johnson: 6 points, 1 steal
Second Half: #16 West Georgia 78, Union 66
Littlepage opens up the second half with a fade away jumper in the post, and then records a block moments later. Ahmad Johnson earns a trip to the line and was able to cut the Wolves’ lead back to eight. In Union’s next possession, Johnson found himself back at the charity strike and knocked down both attempts. Still trailing by eight, Amari Davis finds a bucket following a rebound on the offensive glass. Pyke gets rolling again, knocking down a three-pointer to cut the West Georgia lead to nine. Pyke knocked down yet another three-pointer a few possessions later, keeping Union within 11 points of the lead. 14:20 remains in the second half.
Parker Applegate cuts the lead back to within ten with a layup, 12:08 remaining. Pyke reaches 24 points with a layup, bringing Union to a seven-point deficit. Zawdie Jackson stretched the West Georgia lead back to nine with a layup of his own. Jackson finds the hoop again, scoring his 20th point of the game. West Georgia led 63-53 with eight minutes left in the game. Dusan Djordjevic knocks down two shots from the free throw line, followed by a jumper made by Ahmad Johnson.
Union now trailed by seven with just seven minutes remaining. Johnson scored once more on a mid-range jumper, closing the gap to five before Zawdie Jackson knocked down a three-pointer (66-58). Jackson then recorded a steal, leading to a fast break steal (68-58). Jackson continued to make the Bulldogs pay, scoring from mid-range to push his game total to 25. Pyke also reached 25 points moments later, hitting two free throws to keep Union in the game. West Georgia’s Kolten Griffin put the nail in the coffin, hitting a three-pointer to hand the Bulldogs their third conference loss.
Notable Stat Lines
Jordan Pyke: 29 points, 2 assists,15 rebounds, 2 steals
Ahmad Johnson: 14 points, 1 steal
Union will return home to take on Christian Brothers on December 8th. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
