DEL.ICIO.USCOLLEGE BASKETBALL: GEORGIA
Three-pointer sinks Georgia at the buzzer
Kevin Walker hit half-court shot for Texas A&M-Corpus Christi as time expired in overtime
The Associated Press
Monday, December 22, 2008
Athens — Kevin Palmer hit a 3-pointer as time expired to give Texas A&M-Corpus Christi an 80-79 overtime win over Georgia on Monday night.
Georgia (7-4) looked to have salvaged a win after Dustin Ware hit one of two free throws with 3.2 seconds to play in overtime, giving the Bulldogs a 79-77 lead.
AP
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Kevin Palmer (15) sinks a 3-pointer from near half court as time runs out in overtime to defeat Georgia 80-79 in Athens.
But Palmer was able to penetrate close enough for a shot near half court that banked off the glass and in as time expired. It was the sixth 3-pointer of the game for Palmer, who led the Islanders (6-6) with a career-high 31 points.
“Kevin came back and played great after Savannah State,” said Texas A&M Corpus Christi coach Perry Clark, whose team lost to Savannah State 47-42 on Thursday. “He is finding his niche and is getting good at his new role.”
Demond Watt also chipped in with 14 points.
Ware came off the bench to lead the Bulldogs with 22 points, while Travis Leslie scored 19 and Trey Thompkins added 13.
Georgia led by three points at the break, but the Islanders outscored the Bulldogs 41-38 in the second half and 14-13 in the extra frame.
The game was the Bulldogs’ second overtime contest in three days but, unlike their 74-73 win over Wofford on Saturday, this one didn’t go Georgia’s way.
“We didn’t play as well as we’d like to,” Georgia coach Dennis Felton said. “Down the stretch we made a couple of huge plays to get ourselves back out in front and have a chance to win.”
Clark, on the other hand, was extremely pleased with the results.
“This was a tremendous win for our team after our loss to Savannah State,” Clark said. “The biggest thing for me is how we learned from our mistakes. We showed energy, and we were very resilient all game.”
Georgia bolted out to a double-digit lead in the first half, only to let it slip away gradually. The Bulldogs led the Islanders by as much as 12 points at 23-11 after a pair of free throws by Corey Butler. By halftime, the lead was down to 28-25.
Georgia sustained some breathing room early in the second half, stretching the margin out to eight points several times with the last time at 40-32 on a layup by Leslie. But Texas A&M-Corpus Christi embarked on an 11-1 run from that point. Three straight layups by Watt and a 3-pointer by Palmer pushed A&M to its first lead of the game at 43-41 with 8:10 remaining.
The teams continued to trade leads for the rest of regulation.
Ware’s 3-pointer with the shot-clock running down lifted Georgia to a 64-63 lead with 1:27 to play. But Palmer answered with a 3-pointer with 48 seconds to go, putting the Islanders up by two. Ware made a layup with 39 seconds to go to tie the game at 66-all, a score that would hold up for overtime.
The Islanders burst out to a 75-70 lead with 1:38 remaining in the extra period, forcing the Bulldogs to rally. Thompkins hit a 3-pointer with 1:26 to play, but Tim Green’s short jumper gave the Islanders a four point lead with 1:08 to play.
Leslie hit the first of two free throws with 46 seconds to go, and Thompkins saved the rebound and scored on a putback with 39 seconds showing, closing Georgia’s gap to 77-76. Georgia stole the inbounds pass and Leslie made another layup with 30 seconds left to give the Bulldogs a 78-77 lead.
Palmer missed his next shot for the Islanders and Georgia rebounded, forcing the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi to foul. Ware hit the first of two free throws, which proved one point short after Palmer’s dramatic shot.
The Islanders came into the game ranked 14th in the nation in steals, averaging 10 a game. They pilfered the ball 14 times and forced 25 turnovers that led to 29 points.
Georgia was without leading scorer Terrence Woodbury, who dressed but did not play due to a sore ankle.
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