AMERICUS - Georgia Southwestern senior guard Marlon Rivera posted his first double-double of the season with game-highs in points (21) and rebounds (10) as the 12th-ranked Hurricanes completed the season sweep of West Florida, 69-61, on Tuesday evening in the Storm Dome.
GSW defeated West Florida just 10 days ago in Pensacola, 64-62.
The teams went back-and-forth over the opening four minutes on Tuesday, locking at 6-6, before back-to-back 3-pointers from Colin Slotter propelled GSW to a 9-2 run and a 15-8 lead with 14:15 remaining in the half.
UWF (5-3) responded with a 7-2 run of its own to cut the lead to a bucket with just over 10 minutes before the break.
The 'Canes surged again, methodically building an 11-point edge - their largest of the night - over the next nine minutes and eventually took a 32-25 lead into halftime.
The Argonauts would not go away quietly and chipped away at the margin throughout the second half until finally regaining the lead (47-45) with 9:50 to play.
A clutch 3-point basket from Will Kenimer gave the advantage back to the Hurricanes. GSW would not relinquish the lead the rest of the way. The Hurricanes, who entered the game shooting 59.9 percent from the foul line, hit 5 of 6 free throws over the final 30 seconds to seal the victory.
En route to his double-double, Rivera was 9 of 13 from the line and he added five assists. Colin Slotter added 17 points off the bench for the Blue & Gold and Phillip Brown scored 10 with nine rebounds.
West Florida was led by 18 points from Martell Buie. Mike Whisman and Marquis Mathis scored 12 apiece. Jamar Moore, who was averaging 15.4 points for the Argonauts, was held to two points and did not connect on six attempts from the field.
Overall, both teams shot well with UWF finishing at 48.3 percent and GSW at 51.2 percent. It was the third time in six games that the Hurricanes finished over 50 percent from the floor. While UWF held a sizeable advantage in points in the paint (40-22), the GSW bench doubled up UWF's reserves, 24-12.
GSW (6-0) returns to action on Saturday when it opens Peach Belt Conference play at Montevallo at 4:30 p.m.
