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ROME, Ga. – Playing its best basketball at the right time the Lee Flames ended the regular season with a 79-73 road victory over rival Shorter to clinch a home playoff game next Tuesday.

The Flames finish the regular season with their fourth straight victory to move to 16-11 overall and 11-9 in the GSC. Lee claims the fourth-seed in the GSC Tournament and will host Delta State in a GSC quarterfinal game on Tuesday at 8 p.m. A forgettable season ends for the Hawks at 3-25 and 3-17.

A key component in the late-season surge for the Flames has been sophomore-transfer Colton Blevins. The big man from Jamestown, Tenn. led the way with 25 points on 8 of 12 shooting from the field while pulling down 10 rebounds. Blevins has led Lee in scoring in each of their last four games, all wins, and is now averaging 10.7 ppg.

Ryan Montgomery followed with 15 points and eight boards before fouling out late in the contest. Leander Ridgeway Jr. came off the bench to add eight points while grabbing five rebounds.

"We are certainly excited to be able to host a playoff game and try and extend our season in front of our great fans who showed up in force tonight and made the trip down to provide great support for us tonight," said head coach Bubba Smith.

Lee opened up a quick 10-point lead over the Hawks and would extend the margin all the way to 20 points with just over a minute left in the first half before taking a 17-point lead into the intermission.

Shorter, playing its final game of the season, would not go quietly however as it chipped away and cut the lead down to five on several occasions in the second half but would pull no closer.

An uncharacteristic 21 turnovers by the Flames allowed the Hawks to hang around in the second half. Shorter turned the 21 floor mistakes into 24 points while Lee converted 13 turnovers into just nine points.

"We had to get a few stops down the stretch and we made enough plays in the second half. We didn't shoot the ball well against their zone and had some matchup issues defensively trying to guard their smaller lineup but we overcame those obstacles and that's what you have to do on the road," said Smith. "We knew being a rivalry game on the road they weren't going to roll over and it wasn't going to be easy. But in the end we found a way to pull it out and this team is playing with confidence in late game situations."

The Flames held a commanding advantage on the glass as they out rebounded Shorter by a 40-24 margin.

Amonte Potter led the Hawks with 21 points. Jonathan Mason poured in 19 and Josh Burnett rounded out the double-figure scoring with 10 points, six rebounds and five assists.

In a road win last Saturday at Delta State the Flames clinched a berth in the GSC Tournament for the first time in program history and on Tuesday they will open postseason with the same Delta State club. Lee defeated the Statesmen in both regular season meetings this year.

Walker Arena will be rocking on Tuesday as the Lady Flames also clinched the fourth-seed on the women's side and will take on West Georgia at 6 p.m. Lee joins Valdosta State as the only schools to host both a men's and women's quarterfinal game.