Newark, Del.-Georgia State fell at Delaware, 76-74 in overtime Saturday at the Bob Carpenter Center. Joe Dukes scored 23 points for the Panthers, but Delaware's Jawan Carter scored five straight points at the end of regulation to tie the game and then hit the winning three-pointer in overtime for the Blue Hens.
With the scored tied at 72-all in the extra session, Carter, the CAA's third-leading scorer, nailed a three-pointer from the corner to put Delaware (6-14, 2-7 CAA) ahead with 50 seconds left. Georgia State (9-12, 3-6 CAA) answered with a stickback by Ousman Krubally that made the score 75-74 with 35 seconds to play.
The Panthers fouled Carter with 13 seconds on the clock, and after he made one of two free throws, Kevin Lott missed a three-pointer for GSU and Krubally's tip at the buzzer would not go down.
Krubally notched his fourth double-double of the season with a career-high 16 points and 11 rebounds.
"We had a play designed for Joe, but they did a good job switching and Joe couldn't get to the basket," said GSU head coach Rod Barnes. "Kevin Lott had a pretty good look, and Ousman had a chance at a tip."
Georgia State led 70-65 in regulation when Carter completed a three-point play Carter completed a three-point play with 1:29 to go that pulled Delaware within two. After a turnover by Krubally, Carter drove to the basket for the tying layup with 35 seconds on the clock.
"We contained him most of the game, but he's a very good player and he made plays down the stretch," Barnes said of Carter.
With the game tied at 70, Krubally had his shot blocked by Jamelle Hagins. Alphonso Dawson rebounded for the Blue Hens, but Carter missed a potential winning shot at the buzzer to force the overtime.
Dukes turned in a strong all-around effort with eight rebounds, six assists, three steals and just one turnover to go along with his 23 points, which included three three-pointers. Trey Hampton and Jihad Ali added 11 points each.
"I thought Joe might have played the best game of his career," said Barnes. "When he was at the point, he ran our team really well; off the ball, he gave us scoring and he didn't turn the ball over."
After trailing by 11 points late in the first half, the Panthers scored the final six points of the half to go into the locker room down 41-36. In the second half, Georgia State chipped away and finally took its first lead at 55-54 on a jumper by Marques Johnson with 11:27 to left.
After both teams went scoreless for nearly three minutes, Dukes hit back-to-back treys and then fed Hampton for an alley-oop dunk to give GSU a 62-57 lead. Carter answered with a layup before the Panthers scored six straight to lead 68-59 with five minutes to go. But from there, the Panthers managed only one more basket, a layup by Hampton with 1:29 to play.
Carter finished with 12 points on 8-for-12 shooting and grabbed four steals. Dawson scored points on four treys for Delaware, which snapped a six-game losing streak.
Georgia State stays on the road for its next two games, beginning Thursday at Old Dominion.
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