AUGUSTA, Ga. - Augusta State dealt Georgia College & State its first Peach Belt Conference loss Thursday night in an 84-67 victory over the Bobcats in Christenberry Fieldhouse.

In a matchup of the top two teams in the Southeast Region, the No. 7 Jaguars shot 53 percent in the first half and built a 20-point halftime lead. GCSU, ranked 14th nationally and No. 2 in the region, closed to within nine on two occasions midway through the second half.

After the Bobcats pulled to within 54-45 at the 10:28 mark, ASU countered with an 8-0 spurt to push its lead back to double digits. Ben Madgen's 3-pointer with 8:33 left off a feed from Fred Brathwaite stemmed the tide and GCSU got no closer than 13 the rest of the way.

The victory lifted the Jags to 21-2 overall and 13-1 in league play. The Bobcats, who entered the contest riding a 12-game winning streak, dropped to 18-3 and 11-1, respectively.

With the win, ASU moved a full game in front of GCSU atop the conference standings.

"We had a really good effort tonight and the intensity was there for most of the game," said ASU head coach Dip Metress. "We got a little too emotional for one little stretch. But tonight was a really good win. We caught the 3's early and were rebounding really well in the first half. Hopefully, we'll have a sold out house this Saturday."

Madgen drained four 3-pointers and tallied a season-high 28 points as the Jags extended their home winning streak to 25 games. Fred Brathwaite registered 19 points and eight rebounds, while Alex Smith booked his first double-double of the season with 13 points and a game-high 11 boards.

Daniel Dixon went over the 1,000-point mark in his career with eight points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals and Franck Ndongo netted 10 points off the bench.

Trent Fildes led GCSU with 20 points and seven rebounds. Ryan Aquino managed 17 points and Ty Rowland and Jake Rios added 10 each. The Bobcats were without the services of leading scorer Graham Martin, who sat out the game after suffering a concussion in last Saturday's 74-67 home win over Clayton State.

The win -- ASU's 200th in conference play dating back to 1991 -- was the 22nd straight home conference win and its eighth victory in the last nine meetings with GCSU.

The Jags host PBC-newcomer Montevallo Saturday for Homecoming and Military Appreciation Day in a 12:00 p.m., tipoff at Christenberry Fieldhouse. The contest will be televised live nationally by CBS College Sports Network.

The live TV broadcast will mark the fourth time in the last three seasons that ASU has appeared on national TV.

The Falcons (19-3, 9-3) outlasted USC Aiken, 82-76, in overtime Thursday night in the USCA Convocation Center.