In a thrilling Freedom Classic matchup, Virginia State University edged out Virginia Union University with a 78-74 victory Saturday night in Petersburg. The game featured dramatic runs from both teams, including a late push by the Panthers that brought the contest down to the wire. 

  

Virginia Union scored the game’s first two baskets before Virginia State’s Clint Wright Jr. got the Trojans going with back-to-back three-pointers.

A monster block on defense turned into a fast-break score, giving Virginia State an 8-7 edge. Jayson Harris followed with a layup, putting the Trojans up by one, and Wright Jr. hit another three-pointer to extend the lead. Moments later, Daryl Mackey Jr. drained a triple, forcing Union to take an early timeout as VSU’s lead grew.

Wright Jr.’s dominance continued with a steal and an assist to Dajour Rucker for a layup that put the Trojans up by 10. Wright Jr. then hit another three-pointer, pushing the lead to 15 with just over six minutes left in the first half. Union fought back with Jaedan Jefferson connecting from long range and Bobby Gardner’s three-pointer cutting the deficit to 10 by halftime, with VSU leading 39-29. Virginia State opened the second half with a layup from Tim Uzochukwu, followed by a putback dunk from Mackey Jr. to extend the lead to 14. However, Union’s Daylon Mitchell hit a three-pointer to spark a comeback, eventually narrowing the gap to seven. Mitchell stayed hot with back-to-back threes, cutting VSU’s lead to just four points. A layup by Mitchell later brought Union within two.

A tip-in by Uzochukwu snapped VSU’s scoring drought, but Union’s Jonathan King tied the game at 58 on a trip to the free-throw line. After Davian Coleman’s dunk briefly gave the Trojans the lead, Union answered with a layup to knot the score again. Mackey Jr. hit another key three-pointer to put VSU up by three with five minutes remaining.

Rucker delivered a clutch 3-pointer with under two min- utes left to extend the Trojans’ lead to six. Jacob Cooper’s crafty dribbling led to an easy layup for Harris, and Rucker sealed the victory with two clutch free throws. 

Despite Union closing the gap to two points in the final seconds, VSU held on with Wright Jr. redeeming himself at the free-throw line after grabbing a crucial rebound.

Virginia State’s Jacob Cooper led the team with 14 points and 13 assists, while Davian Coleman paced the Trojans on the boards with six rebounds. For Virginia Union, DJ Mitchell’s 21 points led the way, with Jonathan King adding 19 points and seven rebounds. Gardner contributed 14 points, and Malachi Dark chipped in 12 as Union battled back but ultimately fell short.

“I thought we came out a little sluggish in the first half, and Virginia State jumped on us early,” said VUU Head Coach Jay Butler. “We gave up too many offensive rebounds to take the lead in the second half, and that was the difference down the stretch.”

The Panthers, now 7-9 over-all and 1-3 in the CIAA, will look to bounce back against Bowie State University on Tuesday, Jan. 22, at 7:30 p.m. in Bowie, Md.