Georgia State was serious about getting that school record for consecutive wins on Thursday.
The Panthers used a pair of extended offensive runs, one in each half, and rolled to a 72-52 win over in-state rival Georgia Southern before a rowdy crowd of 1,937 at the GSU Sports Arena, giving coach Ron Hunter's team its record ninth straight victory. That it came against their rivals from Statesboro made it even sweeter for Georgia State.
“I don't know that I've ever been as happy for a group of kids,” Hunter said. “A lot of times the seniors get a new coach and it takes a year for them to jell. These are my guys. I want them to celebrate this win.”
Senior James Fields continued his strong play with a season-high 18 points, five assists and four steals. Fields has made 22 of 33 from the floor in his last five games. Sophomore Devonta White added 17 points, four assists and three steals, and senior Eric Buckner had 13 points and a game-high eight rebounds. Tony Kimbro Jr. scored 12 and Jihad Ali scored 10 with six rebounds.
Fields, a native of Savannah, was recruited by Georgia Southern starting with his sophomore season in high school. But he felt a kinship with the former coaching staff and opted to attend Georgia State. Still, Fields hears a lot of trash talking when he goes home and admitted he had this game marked on his calendar for months.
“This whole week has been rough,” Fields said. “I got a text from coach this morning asking me if I was ready.”
Turns out he was, as was the rest of the Georgia State team, which has beaten Southern four of the lat five meetings.
The win means Georgia State (9-3) is off to its best start since going 11-1 to begin the 2000-01 season. The Panthers, who haven't lost since returning from a three-game trip to open the season on the West Coast, celebrated by exchanging high-fives and fist bumps with some of the fans in the student section.
Georgia Southern (3-7) lost its third straight. The Eagles were led by Ben Drayton with 11 points and reserve Tre Bussey with 10.
With the game tied at 10-10 midway in the first quarter, Georgia State's defensive pressure began to pay off. The Panthers went on a 17-2 run, with a pair of 3-pointers from Kimbro and had a 15-point lead with 7:40 left in the half. Southern cut the advantage to 36-23 at halftime when Ben Drayton converted a four-point play with 5.2 seconds left.
“I though our press was really good,” Hunter said. “I didn't think we were very good offensively, but we were relentless on defense.”
Georgia Southern made a move early in the second half and cut the lead to 36-29 on a jumper by Drayton. But Georgia State regained its composure and reeled off four unanswered to regain a 15-point lead. Georgia State later had a 14-0 run – punctuated by back-to-back slams by Buckner and Fields – that extended its lead to 60-36. Southern never got closer than 20 points.
Georgia Southern shot 45.5 percent from the floor, better than the 33 percent of success other opponents have had against Georgia State this season. But the Eagles committed 26 turnovers, leading to 26 Georgia State points and were starved for shots; Georgia State had 17 more attempts than Southern, who often left their offensive zone with one or few shot attempted.
Georgia State is off until Jan. 2 when its hosts Drexel in a Colonial Athletic Association game.
“We've just got to keep playing great defense,” Buckner said. “We've got to keep improving our defense and keep going.”
About the Author
