ATLANTA (Dec. 30, 2006) ? Georgia State overcame a poor shooting night behind a game-high 20 points from senior guard Kelcey Roegiers-Jensen (St. Petersburg, Fla.) as the Panthers defeated Tennessee-Martin 58-50 in overtime Saturday afternoon in the championship of the Georgia State University Invitational at the GSU Sports Arena. State wins its eighth Invitational crown in the 13-year history of the tournament and third title in the last four years.

The Panthers (8-4), who have won five straight and eight of their last nine, trailed for most of the second half against UT-Martin (6-5). The Skyhawks' Kimberly Cox kept UTM in the lead, 45-42, with 1:19 remaining after connecting on an off-balance jumper. However, with the shot clock winding down, Georgia State freshman guard Tabitha David (Mableton, Ga.) sank a three-pointer from the left side to tie the match at 45-all with under a minute left.

The two teams combined for four turnovers in the final minute. Both squads had chances to take the lead as Panthers' sophomore guard Brittany Hollins (Columbia, S.C.) missed the front-end of a 1-and-1 and Skyhawks' guard Jennifer Angler missed a driving layup with less than two seconds on the clock that would have given UT-Martin the advantage.

Georgia State out scored Tennessee-Martin 13-5 in the extra period. All 13 points came from the free throw line as State missed on its three field goal attempts, but made 13-of-14 from the charity stripe. State opened the stanza on a 5-0 run. UTM trimmed the deficit to two, 50-48, with 2:30 left in the frame. But, the Panthers finished on an 8-2 run with eight straight free throws from Roegiers-Jensen, David and Hollins to seal the victory.

Hollins finished with 12 points and a game-high six assists. David added 13 points for the Panthers. Hollins and Roegiers-Jensen, who was named the Invitational's Most Valuable Player, were both named to the all-Invitational team. UT-Martin's Phyllisha Mitchell and Andreika Jackson were also selected to the all-Invitational team. Mitchell collected 11 points in the loss and Jackson recorded a double-double with 13 points and a game-high 11 boards.

The Panthers made 20 percent of their field goals in the first half and trailed 21-16 at the break. Tennessee-Martin staked its biggest advantage of the afternoon, 36-25, after a jumper from Cox with 9:15 remaining in regulation. Behind 43-38 with 4:00 on clock, the Panthers' moved to within one, 43-42, with 1:49 left.

Neither team performed well from the floor as Georgia State made 31 percent of its field goals compared to 33 percent for Tennessee-Martin. The Panthers' were out rebounded 46-37, but shot 70 percent (19-of-27) from the free throw line, while the Skyhawks connected at 52 percent (12-for-23) from the charity stripe.

Portia Wilson scored a game-high 22 points and added a game-best 12 rebounds to lead three Mississippi Valley State (3-6) players in double figures as the Devilettes topped Birmingham-Southern (4-9) 65-63 in the consolation game of the GSU Invitational. Karmethia Mazique collected 12 and Ashley Robinson had 14 for MVSU. Hali Moore came off the bench to lead BSC with 19 points. Muneca Oliver had 10 for BSC. Wilson and Moore were also named to the all-Invitational team.

Georgia State slips full swing into Colonial Athletic Association play, beginning next week, as the Panthers host Northeastern Thursday at 6 p.m. at the GSU Sports Arena. State entertains James Madison Sunday, Jan. 7, at 2 p.m.

Box Scores

CONSOLATION GAME                                                                     CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Birmingham-Southern (4-9) -- 27-36=63                                                Tennessee-Martin (6-5) -- 21-24-5=50

Mississippi Valley State (3-6) -- 34-31=65                                           Georgia State (8-4) -- 16-29-13=58

All-Invitational Team:

Hali Moore (BSC), Portia Wilson (MVSU)

Andreika Jackson (UTM), Phyllisha Mitchell (UTM)