Albany, GA- Earl Farnum scored 23 points and added seven rebounds to lead the Albany State Golden Rams to a pulsating 98-90 victory over archrival Fort Valley State. With the win, ASU improves to 7-11 overall and 3-8 in the SIAC. FVSU falls to 1-17, 1-10.

Albany State started the contest on fire. Led by early three-pointers by Larry Bullock, Demetri Wheeler and Dominique Pollard, the Golden Rams appeared to be on their way to destroying the Wildcats. ASU led 39-18 with 7:24 left in the first half.

However, Fort Valley State took advantage of an Albany State drought. The Golden Rams went cold, and the Wildcats closed the gap to 47-43 at halftime.

In the second half, ASU was able to build its lead back to 11, 62-51, at the 16:38 mark. FVSU would come back again and cut the lead to 81-80 with five minutes left in regulation. However, the Golden Rams hit some key shots down the stretch to put their rivals away.

Bullock added 17 points, including five three-pointers, and Wheeler finished the game with 15 points and eight rebounds for Albany State. Pollard and Davetom Odom both came off the bench to score 14 and 11 points, respectively. Point guard Darshtyn Baker recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 assists.

The Golden Rams shot 33-for-70 (47.1%) from the field, 12-for-28 (42.9%) from three-point range, and 20-for-24 (83.3%) from the free throw line.

Albany State returns to action on Monday, February 2^nd when they host the Clark Atlanta Panthers at ASU HPER Gymnasium. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m.