VALDOSTA — The Lady Blazer women’s basketball team and Blazer men’s basketball team open The Complex to the public on Thursday, Nov. 2 at 7 p.m. to host Blazer Madness. Fans will be able to meet both the Blazer and Lady Blazer basketball teams, hear from Blazer head coach Mike Helfer and Lady Blazer head coach Deandra Schirmer, and view performances by VSU’s national champion Red Hots and cheerleaders.

Both teams will have various competitions including three point shooting, trick shot contest, and the men will compete in a dunk contest. The event is open to the public and doors will open at 6 p.m. VSU students also will have the opportunity to win a $100 Visa gift card and the first 50 students will receive a voucher for a free sandwich from Chicken Salad Chick.

The Lady Blazer basketball team is coming off a 22-7 record overall and a program best 20-4 record in Gulf South Conference play. As a team, the Lady Blazers were picked third in the GSC Preseason Coaches’ Poll and received two first place votes. Junior Taylor Searcey was named to the five-player preseason all-conference team. Searcey is coming off a 2022-2023 campaign where she averaged a team best 12.4 points and 7.1 rebounds.

The Blazer men’s basketball team finished its 2022-2023 season with a record of 18-13 overall and a 14-10 GSC record. The men’s squad was voted fourth in the GSC Preseason Coaches’ Poll. The Blazers bring back graduate student Jay Rucker who averaged 10.4 points, a team high 5.8 rebounds, and swatted a team leading 35 shots last season.