ATLANTA (Feb. 14) ? Georgia State rolled to its third consecutive Colonial Athletic Association home win by a 64-49 margin over George Mason on Valentine's Night at the Sports Arena.

The Panthers got a career-best 25 points from sophomore forward Danyiell McKeller and 20 points from junior guard Brittany Hollins in posting their largest winning margin of the season.

“Our goal is to keep moving up the CAA standings and get up to the top half of the league for the tournament seeding, so we are looking ahead and trying to take advantage of our opportunities,” Coach Lea Henry noted. “We had better poise in our half-court offense tonight and did the little things that don't show up on the stat sheet like helping with traps on defense and setting picks.”

Georgia State (7-16, 4-8) gets a tie-breaker over George Mason (9-14, 3-9) should the teams finish tied since they play just once this season. Tonight, the Panther held a 39-29 rebound advantage and forced 24 Mason turnovers.

George Mason got 11 points from Casey Quigley and 10 points and eight rebounds from Moni Akintunde.

The Panthers used a quick 9-0 run to open a 9-2 lead four minutes into the game. A McKeller layup at 14:18 opened the first double-digit lead at 15-5. The closest Mason got in the first half was six points at 17-11 with 9:20 on the clock. Another McKeller basket at 1:11 opened an 11-point lead at 26-15 and State took a 28-17 advantage into the locker room.

In the second half, State maintained that 11-point lead through the first five minutes at 34-23 when Mason made its one and only run at the lead. The Patriots scored eight straight points to cut it to 34-31 with 13:29, but back-to-back three-point shots by Brittany Hudson and Brittany Hollins got a 10-0 State run going that pushed the lead up to 47-33 at the 10-minute mark. State made 8-of-10 free throws in the final two minutes to secure the third straight home win.

“I know I am just a sophomore, but I am trying to become a leader and help others on the team,” McKeller said postgame. “Coach wanted me to show more emotion and I think my intensity is showing up more this season.” Her 25 points bested her 24 points earlier this season.

Georgia State got solid performances from guard Monica Mann, who had team bests of seven steals and five assists, while forward Shay Rawls had her 10th game with double-figure rebounds with 10 this evening. Brittany Hudson got a start and responded with six points, six rebounds, and 2 assists. Senior Vatai Smith came off the bench to add four rebounds and four points. Hollins is now two steals away from tying the school career record, three from breaking it. The 20 points for Holllins was her 17th consecutive in double figures and her third game with 20 or more points this season.

This win was No. 275 in Coach Lea Henry's 14-year head coaching career.

Georgia State returns to action to try to make it four straight at home on Sunday in a 2 p.m. Homecoming game against VCU