Devin Schmidt posted a career high of 35 points to lead No. 15 Delta State to a 92-70 victory over West Alabama in Gulf South Conference basketball action Monday at Walter Sillers Coliseum.

GSC leader Delta State improved its win streak to nine and moves to 18-2 overall; 11-1 in conference. UWA falls in its third straight game to drop to 10-8 and 7-5.

“Schmidt had an unbelievable performance,” UWA head coach Mark Downey said. “We hung with him for most of the first half, but then we got anxious and missed some important shots. Then he made us pay. I’m proud of the way our guys fought back in the hostile environment. We stayed together and never quit.”

With nine lead changes in the first half, the Statesmen pulled away with a 49-33 lead at the break. They finished 28-of-52 from the field, leading by as many as 30 in the second half.

The Tigers had a season high of 26 personal fouls that yielded 27 points for the Statesmen. UWA ended 26-of-67 from the field; 12-of-36 from the 3-point line.

Schmidt shot 11-of-17 from the field on the way to his personal best. He shot his total of five 3-pointers in the first half. GSC leading scorer Willie Readus totaled 25 points and 11 boards.

Desmond Raymond led the Tigers with 23 points, shooting 10-of-19 from the field. Jared Woolfolk followed with a career high of 22 points, shooting 8-of-18 including six 3-pointers. Sandy Underwood tallied 12.

West Alabama will return home to take on Valdosta State on Thursday. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. in Pruitt Hall. The game can be heard on ESPN 104.9 and ESPN1049.com.

“It’s going be a tough game, but it’s at home,” said Downey. “We just have to learn to play 40 minutes. We haven’t done that in a long time. We just have to keep grinding.”