Statesboro, Ga.-Georgia State mounted a furious rally at the end of regulation, but Georgia Southern proved to be too much in overtime as the Panthers fell 74-72 at Hanner Fieldhouse on Wednesday night. Junior Brandon McGee recorded his second double-double of the season, scoring 23 points and pulling down a team-high 10 boards in the loss.
After trailing the entire first half, Georgia Southern (4-9, 0-2 SoCon) opened the second half with a 25-8 run to take a 52-39 lead with 10:22 remaining in the second half. State trailed by double digits until head coach Rod Barnes' squad took control with less than two minutes left to send the game to overtime.
Freshman Devonta White started the rally with a pair of free throws, cutting Southern's lead to 63-55 with 1:58 remaining. Next time down the court, White made the first of two free throws and missed the second as junior Eric Buckner grabbed the rebound and made the put-back to cut the deficit to four.
Buckner, who was hampered by foul trouble, finished with 14 points and six rebounds in just 22 minutes of action. The junior shot 7-of-8 from the field as the Panthers shot 50.9 percent for the game.
White, who made his second straight start, finished with seven points, including 5-of-6 from the free throw line. The freshman made one of his three steals and scored a lay-up with 29 seconds remaining to cut the Eagles lead to two.
Junior James Fields, from nearby Savannah, Ga. and playing in front of a large crowd of family and friends, scored the tying basket with 8.4 seconds remaining to send the game into overtime. It marked the Panthers third overtime game of the year and fifth game this season that was not decided until either the last possession or overtime.
Buckner scored the Panthers first six points in overtime before fouling out and gave State a 69-68 lead midway through overtime.
After Southern scored four straight points in the extra frame, McGee tied the game with a three-pointer with just over a minute remaining.
Southern's Ben Drayton made a pair of free throws with 10 seconds remaining to secure the win.
Freshman Harold Doby's last second missed jumper in the lane was waved off as time had already expired.
Drayton finished the game with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting. The junior scored 10 of 12 points for the Eagles to start the second half.
With the loss, Georgia State fell to 4-5 on the season. The loss snapped the Panthers three-game win streak over Southern and sent State to its tenth straight overtime defeat, including third this season. It marked the 43rd time the two in-state rivals had met.
The Panthers opened the game red hot and scored the first five points, holding Southern scoreless until the 17:35 mark. Doby's lay-up with 15:05 remaining in the first half to gave the Panthers a 12-4 lead.
Freshman Javonte Maynor ended an early Georgia Southern 6-0 run at the mid-point of the first half as State proved too much for the Eagle defense.
State extended it lead to 28-19, its largest of the half, on a jumper by Doby. The Eagles cut the deficit to 31-27 at halftime, holding the Panthers without a field goal after Doby's make.
Southern's Eric Ferguson finished the game with 17 points and seven rebounds, while Jelani Hewitt added 10.
Wednesday night's contest began a stretch of seven of the next nine games on the road for the Panthers after opening the season with six of their first eight at home.
Georgia State will return to action at the Dr. Pepper Classic on Dec. 29 in Chattanooga, Tenn. The Panthers will face Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Wednesday's first game, followed by Montreat facing the host Chattanooga Mocs. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. Live stats and live video will be available via GeorgiaStateSports.com.
State will not return to the Sports Arena until Jan. 3 when VCU comes to Atlanta for a key CAA match-up. Tip is set for 7 p.m. Tickets for that game, as well as the Panthers remaining home games can be bought by calling 1-866-GA-STATE or by going online to GeorgiaStateSports.com.
--GeorgiaStateSports.com--
