CLEVELAND – Deasia Merrill scored a career-high 21 points and Mikyla Tolivert scored 19 as GSU beat Bellarmine 66-52 in the conclusion of the Hampton Inn Cleveland Downtown Viking Invitational.

Merrill's 21 points topped her previous high of 17 set against Agnes Scott.  The redshirt-junior from Villa Rica shot an impressive 9-of-11 from the field with five rebounds and is currently shooting .595 on the season.  It is the fourth straight game that she has scored 10 or more points. 

Tolivert was equally impressive a day after scoring 22 points against St. Bonaventure.  The sophomore from Melbourne, Fla. shot 5-of-9 from the field and 3-of-6 from three while grabbing seven rebounds and making all six free throw attempts.

Nyla Jean also reached double-figures with 11 points on 2-of-4 shooting and 6-of-6 at the free throw line, and Alyssa Phillip grabbed seven rebounds off the bench.

Georgia State led by one with 6:28 remaining when the Panthers went on a 16-3 run while holding Bellarmine to 1-of-8 in the final stretch to pull away late in the fourth quarter.  The Panther defense held the Knights to 30 percent shooting, marking the seventh time in eight games that they have held their opponents to under 36 percent from the field.  Their 33.3 percent field goal percentage defense entering the contest ranks 23rd in the NCAA. 

On offense, the Panthers shot 42.9 percent from the field and 11-of-22 (50 percent) in the second half while making 19-of-25 free throws.

Georgia State opened the contest with a 7-0 run before allowing 12 straight points and trailed 12-10 despite holding Bellarmine to 3-of-16 shooting in the first quarter.

The Panthers trailed 23-17 in the second but went on a 10-0 run over the final 3:29 to close out the quarter.  Merrill sparked the run with three straight baskets to tie the game.  Phillip's layup with 1:07 remaining then put GSU in front before she capped the run with a steal and jump shot at the buzzer to extend the lead to four heading into halftime.

Both teams scored 16 points in the third quarter before Georgia State pulled away late in the fourth.  Merrill scored six straight points to put the Panthers up by seven with 4:06 remaining.  Tolivert then made two free throws and a layup to extend the lead to 11, and after a basket by the Knights cut the lead to nine, Merrill added a jumper with 1:52 remaining to hit her new career-high and help seal the game.

GSU will return to the GSU Convocation Center on Wednesday, November 30 to face Chattanooga.  Tipoff is at 6:30 p.m.