MONTEVALLO, Ala. – CJ Jackson scored a career-high 32 points on Saturday, but the Bulldogs fell to Montevallo, 76-73, after the Falcons' Brandon Fussell hit a go-ahead three-pointer with 36 seconds remaining.
 
Union drops to 7-4 (3-2 GSC) with their season's closest loss, while the Falcons remain unbeaten (6-0) in conference play and 10-2 overall.
 
Jackson shot 4-8 from three, a team-high in makes this season. Union also bested its team-high, shooting 11-28 (.393) from beyond the arc. Jackson had 18 of Union's 34 points at halftime and 25 of the team's first 45.
 
For the second-straight game, Union got out to a hot start, opening a 14-4 lead in the first six minutes of play. Jackson, Devaki Garr, Judson Bjornstad, and Kaleim Taylor hit a three-pointer each during the stretch, while Montevallo started 0-5 from deep.
 
Montevallo used a 17-6 run to take the lead at 21-20 and would never trail again, stretching the margin to a game-high 15 with just over nine minutes to play. Union clawed back with a 22-7 run, equalizing the game at 73 with just over a minute to play, but couldn't answer Fussell's late triple.
 
Luke Smith, who had 17 at halftime, led the Falcons with 20 points. Jaylen Curry posted a 14-point, 12-rebound double-double.
 
Parker Applegate and Taylor chipped in eight points apiece; no Bulldogs accompanied Jackson in double-figures. Judson Bjornstad led the Bulldogs' rebounding effort with 10, a career-best.
 
Jackson's point total was his first 30-point game of the season, second night hitting 25, and sixth surpassing 20. The 6-foot-7 graduate averages 17.9 points per game.
 
Union is just 1-4 when opponents score 74 points this season and 6-0 otherwise.
 
Since joining the GSC, Union is 8-2 against Montevallo and has never lost at home. The two teams will meet again in Jackson on February 6.
 
The Bulldogs have finished their 2024 schedule and will return to the floor on January 2 against Alabama-Huntsville. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Fred DeLay Gymnasium.
 
-UNION-