Baltimore (Mar. 2) ? Georgia State's five-game all-time series win streak over Towson ended in overtime Sunday afternoon with a 63-58 Towson extra-period win at the Towson Center.
Down 10 with 6:10 to play and down five with 25 seconds, Georgia State rallied to force the overtime. The visiting Panthers got a three-point basket from Traci Haltiwanger with 14 seconds and she stole the inbounds pass for a game-tying basket with 11 seconds. Towson missed its potential winning try and the teams went to the extra five-minute period.
In the overtime, Towson jumped up six at 59-53, but State came right back to close to within one point, 59-58, with 45.5 seconds left. Shanae Baker-Brice drove and shot over a double-team defense for a basket with 22 seconds. A wide open tying three-point shot with eight seconds by Monica Mann bounced off the rim.
Georgia State (8-20, 5-12) was topped by sophomore forward Danyiell McKeller with 17 points before she fouled out. Brittany Hollins added three treys, 13 points and five assists, while Haltiwanger finished with 12 points, 11 in the second half and overtime.
Towson (19-9, 11-6), who set a school record for regular season wins, was led by Holly Mahan with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Kandace Davis netted 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Baker-Brice contributed 12 points and nine rebounds.
“After struggling the first half, I was proud to see us come back out and fight hard the second half,” Coach Lea Henry said. “I think those offensive rebounds they had, especially at some crucial times near the end, were the difference in the game. But, they are a good team, especially here on their home court. We certainly had our chances to win at the end, too.”
State scored first to start the game, but Towson scored five straight to take an initial 5-2 lead at 16:11. State quickly got the lead back, 6-5 at 13:06. The Panthers maintained the team at 10-6 and 12-8 at 9:38 after a trio of assists, plus a basket by Brittany Hollins. Danyiell McKeller, who had six of the 12 points, picked up her second foul at 9:31 and sat the remainder of the half. Back-to-back steals and lay-ups by Towson's Holly Mahan gave the Tigers a 13-12 advantage at 7:50. State went over six minutes without a field goal as Towson opened a 24-16 lead before State's Shay Rawls made a basket to close the halftime margin back to 24-18. State had 13 turnovers in the first half.
Georgia State will return to Atlanta for its final regular season game on Thursday against Drexel at the Georgia State Sports Arena. The seedings will then be determined for the CAA Championships that begin in Newark, Del., on Thursday, March 13.
