WILMINGTON, N.C. (Jan. 10) ?Georgia State lost to UNC Wilmington, 85-72, in a Colonial Athletic Association game Sunday afternoon at Trask Coliseum.
The host Seahawks shot a sizzling 64 percent for the game as they broke a tie among the two teams tied for eighth place in the CAA. UNC Wilmington hit 25-of-39 field goals and 31-of-38 free throws. UNC Wilmington opened a 17-point halftime lead and Georgia State could cut it down to 10 points three times in the closing minutes, but never get any closer.
Georgia State (6-16, 3-8) was led by sophomore forward Shay Rawls with 15 points. Junior guard Brittany Hollins had 13 points for her 16th straight in double figures. Brittany Hudson and Traci Haltiwanger each added 11 more points.
Freshman Brittany Blackwell scored 17 of her game-co-high 25 points in the second half for the Seahawks. Guard Greta Luksyte scored 17 of her 25 points in the first half. Forward Sahsha Taylor added 20 points for UNC Wilmington (13-9, 4-8).
The game started with the host Seahawks scoring the first 10 points on five lay-ups in the opening four minutes. A Brittany Hollins basket by State was answered by five more Seahawk points for a 15-2 lead at 14:58. A Luksyte basket at 9:15 opened a 20-point lead at 9:15. The largest lead of the first half was 24 points at 38-14. UNC Wilmington held a 17-point half advantage at 45-28.
UNC Wilmington had a 14-5 start to the second half to open a 59-33 lead at 12:50 for the largest lead of the game. State methodically began working its way back into the game, including an 11-0 run that cut the lead from 71-50 to 71-61.
The Panthers will return home for three key CAA match-ups, starting with Thursday night against George Mason at the Sports Arena on the downtown campus.
