ATLANTA - Georgia State dominated both ends of the floor, forcing 22 turnovers while hitting 14 3-pointers, en route to an 86-71 victory over UNCW Wednesday at the GSU Sports Arena.
Devin Mitchell led five different players in double-digits for Georgia State (8-4) with a season-high 23 points. Mitchell shot 8-for-14, with 6-for-10 coming from long range. Junior D'Marcus Simonds had 14 points, with nine rebounds and seven assists. Jeff Thomas added 14 points, Kane Williams had 13 on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting, and Malik Benlevi scored 11.
UNCW (4-8) was led by Jaylen Fornes with 20 points and Jeantal Cylla with 18. However, the 22 turnovers by UNCW led to 31 Georgia State points.
“Really proud of our effort all around tonight,” head coach Ron Hunter said. “We did really well on the offensive end to find out rhythm after a tough night at Kansas State on Saturday and I thought we kept our defensive pressure up all night. It's a great win heading into the holiday break.”
Georgia State came out firing in the first half, riding a 22-3 run to a 51-33 halftime lead. The Panthers shot 10-for-18 from behind-the-arc in the first half while forcing 16 UNCW turnovers. Mitchell scored 17 of his game-high 23 points in the half to lead the Panthers.
Georgia State kept pace in the second half leading 70-45 with 9:45 to play before UNCW cut the lead to 11 with six minutes remaining. Benlevi and Thomas hit back-to-back 3-pointers to put the Panthers back up by 17 as Georgia State pulled away for the win.
Thomas' two 3-pointers tonight moved him into fifth in school history with 168 3-pointers made, passing Leonard Mendez.
Georgia State finished the game shooting 55.4 percent from the floor and 14-of-27 from 3-point range, while also shooting over 70 percent from the free throw line for the fourth consecutive game.
The Panthers topped the Seahawks for the sixth time in the last seven games and now lead the all-time series 11-9.
Georgia State has now made double-digit 3-pointers in five of its first 12 games.
Georgia State, which has now won five straight at home dating back to last season, will conclude non-conference play hosting Middle Georgia State on Dec. 29, in the GSU Sports Arena at 1 p.m. The Panthers will be looking to tie the school record for most non-conference wins in a season.
