CLEMSON, SC -- CLEMSON, SC -- Mya Williams scored a career-high 21 points and Crystal Henderson added 17, also a career high, to lead Georgia State to a 78-72 victory at Saturday at Littlejohn Coliseum.
Mikyla Tolivert chipped in with 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals for the Panthers (5-4), who earned their first win over a Power 5 conference team since 2008-09; that win was also at Clemson. Christeina Bryan contributed 11 points and a career-high nine rebounds.
The game featured 19 lead changes, including nine in the fourth quarter. Georgia State trailed 70-69 when Alyssa Phillip's short jumper gave the Panthers the lead for good with 1:41 to play. Deasia Merrill was fouled on a defensive rebound and sank two free throws to make it 73-70 with 41 seconds left.
A Clemson layup pulled the Tigers within one, but Merrill answered again with a layup for a 75-72 lead with 27 seconds remaining. Clemson was forced to foul, and Tolivert's free throws with 18 seconds left sealed the win.
"I'm really proud of our players for being able to rebound after Thursday [at Winthrop]," head coach Gene Hill said. "Bouncing back with a game like this speaks volumes about the kind of players we have and hopefully we can take this and continue to build off it."
Georgia State connected on 11 3-pointers on 27 attempts. Henderson led the way with four treys, and Williams and Tolivert had three each.
Georgia State forced 14 Clemson turnovers while committing 10 themselves in Saturday's game. The Panthers turned those takeaways into 18 points on the offensive end. Williams' three steals led the way for Georgia State.
How It Happened
After falling behind 16-14, Georgia State went on a 6-0 run with 4:58 left in the first quarter, culminating in a three from Tolivert, to take a 20-16 lead. The Panthers then lost some of that lead, but still entered the quarter break with a 22-20 advantage. Georgia State relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down four shots to account for 12 of its 22 points.
Clemson rallied to take a 28-22 lead before Georgia State went on a 13-0 run starting at the 7:03 mark in the second period, highlighted by a bucket from Tolivert, to take a 35-28 lead. The Tigers then came roaring back to take a 39-37 lead heading into halftime.
Clemson continued to increase its lead after halftime, building a 44-40 advantage before Georgia State went on a 10-0 run, punctuated by a three from Williams, to grab a 50-44 lead with 7:02 to go in the third. Clemson responded to seize a 59-57 lead entering the fourth quarter. Georgia State knocked down three three-pointers in the quarter to score nine of its 20 total points.
Georgia State managed to gain control and had a 73-72 lead before going on a 5-0 run to grow the lead to 78-72 with nine seconds to go in the contest, a score that would hold for the rest of the game. Georgia State fired away from deep in the quarter, knocking down three shots to account for nine of its 21 points.
Game Notes
» The Panthers rallied from a two-point 59-57 third quarter deficit to pick up the win.
» The Panthers shot well from three point range, knocking down 11 of 27 long range attempts.
» The Georgia State defense forced 14 turnovers.
» Mya Williams led the Panthers with a career-high 21 points.
» Georgia State got a game-high nine rebounds from both Christeina Bryan and Alyssa Phillip.
The Panthers return to Atlanta to face LaGrange College on Dec. 19 at 1:30 p.m.
