ATLANTA (Dec. 29) ? Georgia State advanced to the championship game of the 15th annual Georgia State Invitational with a 70-60 win over Mississippi Valley State. The host Panthers will meet Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, who defeated Rhode Island, 75-67, in the second game for the title at 4 p.m. Tuesday. Rhode Island and MVSU will play at 2 p.m.
Georgia State (6-3) won for the fifth time in its last six games with its pressure defense that was No. 4 in the nation in steals (14/6 per game) going into today's game. The aggressive Panthers added 20 steals in today's win and forced 31 Mississippi Valley State turnovers.
Junior forward Danyiell McKeller led three Panthers in double-figures with her 16 points, all in the first half. Freshman point guard Crystal Johnson had 15 points and six assists, while freshman two-guard Jylisa Williams added 13 more points, nine steals, eight rebounds and six assists.
Mississippi Valley State (3-8) got 16 points from Colby Stallings and 11 points from Ashley Brown.
Georgia State led 43-27 at halftime after 11 first-half steals and 20 forced turnovers and built the lead to 22 points with the first six points of the second half. The Panthers led by 16 points with 10 minutes to play at 55-39, but MVSU kept battling back as host Georgia State missed free throws and closed to nine points with 1:16 to play.
Georgia State struggled with its foul shooting today, making just 18-of-33 for 54.5 percent and saw MVSU hold a 49-35 rebound advantage.
“It was a good first half because our pressure defense affected them,” Coach Lea Henry said postgame. “It is good to get a win in the first game back from the break after going into it with a win. But, if we had made our free throws this would have been an easy 20-point win. Our goal is to play to our highest level, not just win, because that is what good teams do. We will keep working on our consistency to play all game long, not just in spurts. Now, we'll get ready to try to win the championship tomorrow.”
ATLANTA (Dec. 29) ? Texas A&M-Corpus Christi defeated Rhode Island, 75-67, in the second game of the 15th annual Georgia State Invitational Tournament. The Islanders will move on to face Georgia State in the Tuesday 4 p.m. championship game. Rhode Island will face Mississippi Valley State in the 2 p.m. consolation match-up.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (4-7) had four players in double figures as the Islanders team shot 53.6 percent for the game on 30-of-56 shots. The Islanders got the lead with the first basket of the game and never trailed. They led 36-24 at the half and by as many as 18 with 5:24 left.
