By: Bailey Clark

COLUMBUS, Ga.- The Georgia College Men's Basketball Team (16-3, 8-2 PBC) took the road matchup win, 69-68 in thriller fashion, Saturday at Columbus State University (13-6, 5-5 PBC).

The clock wound down to 17 seconds as the Cougars' Hunter Preston drew the foul to send him to the freethrow line where he put CSU up by two. The Bobcats got possession and Columbus St. knocked it out of bounds. Chapin Rierson (Calhoun) got the inbound from Wesley Simpson (DeLand, Florida) to restart the clock. The clock ticked down as Rierson dumped the ball into the paint to Simpson who then found Brandon Thomas (McDonough) behind the arc. Thomas faked out the defender as he took a step to the left and drained the three point bucket with one second on the clock to hoist the Bobcats over the Cougars, 69-68. 

GC took the early lead jumping in front of the Cougars 7-0. The lead went back and forth the entire quarter but Columbus St. went into halftime with the 31-24 lead. 

The GC offense was on fire against Columbus St. with three shooters in double digits. Simpson led the charge with 21 points for his sixth 20-plus point game this season. He netted eight field goals including three behind the arc. Jordan Thomas (Conyers) kept his electric season alive, scoring 17 points on the night for the second leading Bobcat scorer. J. Thomas banked in 12 of his points from behind the arc to lead the team in three pointers. B. Thomas not only knocked down the game winner but finished with 11 points on the night as GC's third double digit scorer. B. Thomas shot for 50% behind the arc including the last second bucket. 

Luke Chism (Dawsonville) nabbed a team high of eight rebounds on the night. Simpson and Chris Parks (Buford) had seven rebounds apiece for the second most on the squad. Simpson and Parks also had three rebounds a piece. 

The Bobcats are back in action in the Centennial Center Wednesday, Feb. 2 to take on Flagler College. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. with live stats and video links available at GCBobcats.com. 

The proud recipients of the 2021 PBC Sportsmanship Institution of the Year, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GC Athletics is now two-time winners of both the PBC Commissioner's Cup and the league's sportsmanship honor. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' continued appearances in post-season competition as well as high-level academic success and community-service involvement. Bobcat Athletics holds to the mantra of "Graduating Champions for Life". Sign up at @GCBobcats on all social media outlets for up-to-the-minute reports.