The Georgia State basketball team has had more than its share of issues with COVID-19 since the second half of the season began. Nearly every player on the roster, as well as the coaching staff, has missed time over the past six weeks, when the Panthers have had to postpone or cancel seven games.
On Tuesday, two days after coach Rob Lanier was cleared to return, the Panthers lost 70-67 to South Alabama at the GSU Sports Arena. It was the third consecutive defeat for Georgia State (8-5, 2-4 Sun Belt), which continues to have its moments of brilliance offset by stretches of struggles.
“It was a disappointing performance,” Lanier said. “We’ve been in a disruptive state coming into this game with the lack of practice and lack of scholarship players. We had an opportunity to win a game where we didn’t play particularly well, and we had an open look to take the lead late after falling behind.”
The virus has now run through the coaching and support staff and hit Lanier pretty hard. He was able to return to practice only Monday and looked visibly worn down while conducting his video postgame media conference.
“We had to adjust the way we practice,” Lanier said. “We tried to do the best we could at protecting certain guys so we don’t have any additional problems down the stretch. We didn’t have a staff. We had one coach (Chris Kreider) working them out during the week. Give these guys a lot of credit for essentially having one day of preparation and for having themselves in a position to win. We’ve just got to get better.”
Georgia State was led by Eliel Nsoseme with 18 points and nine rebounds, Justin Roberts with 15 points and Corey Allen with 12 points.
South Alabama (12-8, 6-5) snapped a five-game losing streak to the Panthers. The Jaguars got 18 points from Sam Iorio, 17 from Michael Flowers and 16 from Tyreke Locure, who played all 40 minutes.
The Panthers looked dead in the water with 5:25 remaining when Flowers made a pair of free throws to give the Jaguars a 65-53 lead, the 12-point margin the largest of the game for either team.
But that’s when Georgia State showed signs of life. The Panthers scored 12 straight and tied the score at 65-65 on Roberts’ fast-break basket with 1:41 remaining. Allen missed a 3-pointer from the corner and Jalen Thomas had the rebound for a minute before he was tied up for a jump ball that went to South Alabama on the possession arrow.
“We were in a tight spot, and instead of giving into the frustration, we found a way to dig ourselves out of it and give ourselves a chance,” Lanier said. “I appreciated the guys had some fight, and we’ve got to continue that.”
South Alabama moved quickly, and Locure made a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left. Georgia State was able to dump it inside to Thomas for an easy basket with 14 seconds left. The Panthers, trailing by a point, called timeout and tried to pressure the Jags before John Pettway broke free for the final basket. Georgia State’s Kane Williams missed a heavily defended 3-pointer that would have tied the score.
“The problem at the end was we didn’t execute,” Lanier said. “It was a one-point game, and we didn’t foul to stop the clock. There should have been multiple possessions remaining in the game. We didn’t do a good job coming out of the timeout, and that’s coaching.”
The Panthers were playing without three regulars: Ryan Boyce, who has started 10 games; Collin Moore, who averages 7.1 points; and frontline reserve Kaleb Scott. Those three are not expected to be cleared to return for Thursday’s game against rival Georgia Southern.
