HATTIESBURG, MS --Mikyla Tolivert lead the Panthers with 26 points, but the Georgia State women's basketball team ultimately fell to the Southern Miss Eagles 82-75 on the road Thursday.
Tolivert added three assists and three steals to her 26 point game to lead the Panthers (9-7, 3-3). Crystal Henderson helped out with 13 points and three steals and Deasia Merrill chipped in with eight points and three steals coming off the bench.
Alyssa Phillip pulled down three offensive rebounds to pace an offense that racked up second chance opportunities for Georgia State, grabbing 11 boards and turning them into seven second chance points.
Georgia State forced 16 Southern Miss turnovers while committing 11 themselves in Thursday's game. The Panthers turned those takeaways into 19 points on the other end of the floor. Henderson's three steals led the way for Georgia State.
How It Happened
After falling behind 14-13, Georgia State went on a 7-0 run with 2:29 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Tolivert to take a 20-14 lead. The Panthers then maintained that lead and entered the quarter break with a 25-19 advantage. Georgia State did most of its first quarter damage in the paint, scoring 14 of its 25 points close to the basket.
Despite holding the lead for the majority of the second quarter, the Panthers could not maintain their lead in the second quarter and entered halftime trailing 35-33.
Southern Miss continued to increase its lead after halftime, building a 50-41 advantage before Georgia State went on a 10-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Merrill, to grab a 51-50 lead with 2:22 to go in the third. Southern Miss responded to seize a 58-56 lead entering the fourth quarter. Georgia State took advantage of five Southern Miss turnovers in the quarter, scoring 11 points off of takeaways.
GSU held the Lady Eagles to a two-point game throughout the fourth quarter, but Southern Miss kept widened its lead late in the fourth to a 62-56 advantage. The Panthers went on a 5-0 run, finished off by Mya Williams' three, to shrink the deficit to 62-61 with 7:53 to go in the contest. Southern Miss responded and outscored the Panthers the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 82-75.
Game Notes
» The Panthers' defense forced 16 turnovers.
» GSU cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 11 offensive boards in the game.
» Tolivert led the Panthers with a game-high 26 points, shooting .64 percent in the field and going 7-for-7 at the free throw line.
» Georgia State got a team-high eight rebounds from Alyssa Phillip.
» Mya Williams notched a career-high three assists.
The Panthers look to bounce back on Dec. 20 with a road trip to Mobile, Ala., to face South Alabama at 2:00 p.m. ET.
