Gardner’s 29 points lead Jaguars to victory over USC Beaufort; women win fourth straight
Justin Gray | Sports editor
The Augusta University men sent their seniors off the right way as they defeated USC Beaufort, 98-91, at Christenberry Fieldhouse on Saturday, March 2.
The community of Augusta packed out the gym for Senior Day as AU honored David Viti and Timmy Sellers as their impressive careers at home came to a close. Both played on the Jaguar team that made it to the NCAA Division II national championship game two seasons ago.
The two teams battled throughout the first half and until the Jaguars went on a 9-0 run to take a 43-32 lead with 3:28 remaining in the half.
It seemed as if AU was going to run away with the lead, but USC Beaufort caught fire and went on a 15-5 run to cut the deficit to one at the half.
Coming out of the break, the Jaguars jumped up 59-52 thanks to a Ja’Queze Kirby layup.
Points were coming at a premium for both teams, Augusta finding success in the paint, while Beaufort found it on the perimeter.
Things stayed tight throughout, but the Jaguars put it out of reach with a dagger three-pointer from none other than Viti.
Viti put his hands together and did the “good night” celebration.
“I just figured it was time to let everyone know they could go home and have a good night because the Jags won,” said the senior, who scored 18 points playing in his final home game. “I’m thankful for everyone that supported me in this community. They welcomed me with open arms and treated me like one of their own kids. I cannot thank Augusta enough.”
Demitri Gardner led the Jaguars with a career-high 29 points. He also grabbed five rebounds.
Center Max Amadasun notched his third straight double-double, this the best of all with 22 points and 13 rebounds.
“I feel like I’m playing my best ball,” said the 6-foot-10 junior. “It’s the right time to do so because you want to play your best basketball down the stretch.”
Ja’Queze Kirby totalled 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists and forced five turnovers. An all-around masterclass from the Jaguars X-factor.
“It was nice to close out the season with a win for Timmy and Viti,” said Coach Dip Metress. “Ten games ago, I said to my guys, let’s try and win seven of the last 10. Well, we got eight of the last 10.”
The Jaguars shot a whopping 52.5 percent from the field, overshadowing their 18 turnovers.
Marcus Overstreet led the Sand Sharks with 26 points and Larry Bullock added 23. USCB made 12 of 23 from behind the 3-point line.
That wraps up the regular season, the Jaguars finished up 17-11 overall and 10-8 in the conference. That was good enough for the five-seed in the Peach Belt Conference tournament.
Next up is a date with fourth-place Flagler College on Wednesday, March 6. The two teams split their regular-season games.
The tournament will be held at USC Aiken, which won the men’s regular-season title. The men’s bracket will be released Sunday night, March 3.
Onto the AU women, who defeated USC Beaufort, 68-60. The Jaguars were already the second seed, but didn’t earn a share of the PBC regular-season title because Georgia Southwestern defeated Flagler.
The Jaguars honored Kalen Surles, Tomiyah Alford, Kennedi Manning and Malia Grace on Senior Day.
AU found itself in an unprecedented area as the Jaguars fell behind 11-4, five minutes into the game.
After the media timeout, the Jaguars regrouped and fought back to take a 16-14 lead as the quarter closed.
The AU women started playing suffocating defense and held USC Beaufort to only five points in the second quarter while scoring 18 of their own. Autumn Phillips gave the Sand Sharks all they could handle.
The Jaguars coasted to a 19-point cushion heading into the final quarter of play.
Things got too close for comfort as the Jaguars got complacent and allowed USCB back in the game. The Sand Sharks cut the lead all the way down to five, but the Jaguars held on.
The difference in this one was the Jaguars’ defense as they had 26 points off of turnovers to Beaufort’s 16.
Phillips led Augusta (15-3, 21-7) with 15 points, and Alford followed with 14. Mone Florence added 12 points, four rebounds and forced two key turnovers.
Yamani Paul grabbed seven rebounds to lead the Jaguars in only 18 minutes of play.
Celeste Stewart and her Jaguars, whose 15 conference wins is the most in a season in school history, will head to Georgia Southwestern on Thursday, March 7, to play Georgia College in the first round of the PBC tournament. The bracket will be released Sunday night, March 3.
All games will be streamed live at https://pbcsportsnetwork.com/
Contact Justin Gray at jusgray@augusta.edu.
Center Max Amadasun watches as he scores two of his 22 points in the Jaguars’ 98-81 win over USC Beaufort. At the top of the page, AU’s Demitri Gardner lets one fly on his career-high scoring afternoon. (photos by Paula Toole, AU Athletics)
David Viti (7) played his last game at Christenberry Fieldhouse, scoring 18 points for AU; the Jaguars will face Flagler in the Peach Belt Tournament in Aiken, S.C., on March 6. (photo by Paula Toole)
