Panthers Best Eagles, 72-52
12/23/2011 2:59:00 AM | Men's Basketball
ATLANTA, GA. - Georgia Southern Men's Basketball could not recover from a flat first half on Thursday night (December 22nd) at Georgia State, falling 72-52. The loss to the Panthers was the Eagles' 13th loss all-time against their in-state rival. Georgia State's win extends their program record winning streak to nine games. With the loss, Georgia Southern falls to 3-7 on the year.
"Our guards turned the ball over 26 times and we really struggled to hold onto the ball tonight," said Head Coach Charlton "C.Y." Young. "Georgia State did a great job and played the game with great energy in a very hostile environment. We are going to have to learn to be a more disciplined team in all aspects of the game in order to be successful."
Senior Ben Drayton III (St. Marys, Ga.) earned top-scorer honors with 11 points on the night. He was followed closely by Tré Bussey (Lithia Springs, Ga.) at 10 points including a pair of three-pointers.
Cameron Baskerville (Marietta, Ga.) and Willie Powers III (Gainesville, Fla.) each logged eight points while Powers had a team-high four assists. Sophomore Eric Ferguson (Statesboro, Ga.) had five points to go with five rebounds and Jelani Hewitt (Miramar, Fla.) scored six points with two steals.
State had five players in double figures with 19 from James Fields and 17 from Devonta White to improve to 9-3 on the season and extend their winning streak to nine games.
Southern was hampered by 26 turnovers and shot 45.5% from the field on the night with a 50.0% mark from beyond the arc. The Panthers logged 14 steals and shot 49.2% from the field, attempting 12 more shots than the Eagles. The Panthers won the rebounding battle, 31-25 and had 12 offensive rebounds to Georgia Southern's five.
The Eagles trailed 36-23 at the halftime intermission, but narrowed the lead to seven points with just over three minutes gone in the second period. Southern logged the second half's first six points unanswered to grab the early momentum in the second half.
Georgia State blew the game open around in the middle portions of the second half with a 14-0 run that took the lead up to 24 points with 10:08 remaining. The Panthers would lead by as many as 27 as the hosts routed Georgia Southern by a 72-52 margin.
Georgia Southern returns from its Christmas break on Friday, December 30th, on the road against Auburn. The game can be seen live on CSS and ESPN3.com and starts at 7 p.m. (ET).
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