WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Palm Beach Atlantic men's basketball team hosted No. 22-ranked Valdosta State at home on Saturday.

PBA (3-3, 1-0 SSC) entered the game on a three-game winning streak, including a win yesterday over the university of Fort Lauderdale. Valdosta State (3-2, 0-0 GSC) dropped a tough matchup against Lynn Friday evening. The Sailfish pushed the Blazers to their limit nearly stealing a victory, but VSU held off PBA, 72-71. The Sailfish had a last-second heave from half-court that could've won the game, but Alexander Gorton's attempt was just off the mark.

Jules Jasmin fueled the PBA comeback attempt with 27 points, eight rebounds, and four steals. Gorton finished one rebound shy of a double-double, tallying 13 points, nine boards, and three steals. Will Lee recorded nine points with two assists, two rebounds, and two steals. Marcus Montalvo had eight points with one rebound and two triples off the bench.

The first half was very hectic and fast-paced. Valdosta State's physical defense forced the Sailfish into making several turnovers. The Blazers forced the 'Fish into 17 turnovers in the first half alone, resulting in 19 points off turnovers for the visitors. 

Although their scoring opportunities were limited by the turnovers, PBA hung with the top-25 ranked Blazers on the scoreboard. A pair of free throws from Gorton tied the score at 25 with four minutes left.  Unfortunately for the Sailfish, the turnovers caught up to them as VSU ended the half with an 11-2 run, including five PBA miscues. VSU led 36-27 at the break.

The Sailfish defense did its fair share of frustrating the Blazers in the first half. PBA forced VSU in 10 turnovers and held it to 41 percent from the field.

PBA did not roll over for the Blazers in the second half. PBA faced a 14-point deficit at the 15-minute mark, but a putback bucket by Jakob Hester started the Sailfish comeback. An 11-0 run with 7 points from Jasmin made it 50-47 with just under 13 minutes left. Jasmin scored 11 of PBA's first 16 points in the second half.

Three triples from VSU attempted to kill the Sailfish momentum, but PBA kept battling. Trailing 59-51, the 'Fish went on an 8-0 run with a bucket from Jasmin and two 3-pointers from Montalvo and Lee to tie the game with just over seven minutes left. 

The Blazers shifted into a full-court pressing defense which led to VSU to a 72-65 lead with two minutes to go. PBA refused to give up with a dunk from Jalen Cooper followed by a steal and layup by Gorton making it a 3-point game with 43 seconds left. The Sailfish defense forced a shot-clock violation by the Blazers to get possession with 12 seconds left. The Blazers chose to foul to send Lee to the foul-line who hit two free throws to make it 72-71. PBA fouled to send VSU to the line. The first free throw with five seconds left was missed but deflected out of bounds for VSU to keep the ball. PBA fouled again and the Blazers missed again, but the remaining two seconds on the clock were too little for PBA to get down the court, forcing the halfcourt try from Gorton. PBA's comeback ran out of time, resulting in the 72-71 loss.

Jasmin was nearly perfect in the second half, scoring on 11 of his 13 attempts, totaling 23 points and five rebounds in the period. 

PBA's defense held Valdosta State to the lowest number of points scored in a game this season. The Blazers were held to 37 percent from the field, their worst mark of the season. Meanwhile, the Sailfish shot an efficient 67 percent from the field in the second half and 57 percent for the game. PBA won the rebounding battle, 43-34, and recorded 50 points in the paint compared to 30 for VSU.

The Sailfish resume their SSC schedule next week, traveling to Nova Southeastern on Wednesday, Dec. 1. The game in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. takes place at 7:30 p.m.