BOONE, N.C. – Tookie Brown scored a game-high 21 points, including the last four of the contest for the Eagles, and Georgia Southern overcame a 12-point second-half deficit to top Appalachian State, 60-59, in Sun Belt Conference men's basketball action Saturday afternoon in the Holmes Center.

After Brown's floater in the lane put the Eagles up by three, Isaac Johnson scored on a runner for the Mountaineers with 38.6 seconds to go. The Eagles' Mike Hughes drove to the basket, but had his runner roll off the rim with eight seconds left, and the Mountaineers flew down the floor and fed Ronshad Shabazz for an open 3-pointer from the wing. The shot came off of the rim to the right, and Justin Forrest picked up the bouncing rebound and rushed off a shot that was too long as the buzzer sounded.

Brown added three rebounds, three assists and two steals for the Eagles (14-5, 5-1), and Hughes finished with 12 points and three boards. Montae Glenn collected eight points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots.

Shabazz finished with 17 points and five rebounds to lead Appalachian State (8-11, 3-3), and Johnson had nine points and 11 rebounds. James Forrest chipped in 10 points and four rebounds.

The story
The Eagles trailed by 12 points with 12:15 to play, but went on an 18-5 run over a span of seven minutes and took a 52-51 lead, their first of the game, on a steal and a run-out dunk by Quan Jackson.

The lead changed the next six times down the floor as the teams traded buckets until Brown hit a turnaround jumper in the lane to give the Eagles a 58-57 cushion. Shabazz missed a 3-pointer at the other end, and Brown drove into the lane and hit the runner from the right side for a 60-57 advantage with 56 seconds left. 

Johnson scored a layup for the Mountaineers, trimming the margin to one point to set up the final frantic seconds. The Eagles held the Apps to 3 for 15 from the floor in the last 12 minutes of the game and forced four turnovers.

Leading by four, Shabazz and Forrest hit back-to-back 3-pointers in an 8-2 run to put the Mountaineers ahead 38-28 early in the second half. GS held the Apps to 32 percent shooting for the game but gave up 20 second-chance points on 20 offensive boards.

Quotables
Junior guard Tookie Brown
On scoring down the stretch
"My teammates trust me, and I have a lot of confidence in myself. I knew it was going to come down to the last minute, and I felt like I could take those shots with confidence."

Overall
"We had to fight for this one. App is a long team that can rebound very well, and a lot of guys had to give some good minutes. It just came down to the end, and we really wanted it."

Senior guard Mike Hughes
On hitting two 3-pointers
"I've been struggling a little bit, but coach told me to trust my shot and my preparation, and my teammates put me in a great position."

On the final two possessions of the game
"You never know what situation you are going to be in down the stretch, we prepare for it just in case and you see it helped out in the end today. This is a very resilient squad, and we showed that today."

Head coach Mark Byington
On the win
"We just didn't have it tonight, and we kept asking guys to dig down and find something inside of them. We have high-character guys, tough guys, and they were trying and for the longest, we were stuck in mud. The only thing that wasn't a problem was our defense, and it held us in there long enough. It was an atrocious offensive night until the last couple minutes. Tookie was exhausted but found a way towards the end to make some big shots, and Mike made a big 3 to get us going. When Quan got the steal and the dunk to give us the lead, it energized us and that's when we really felt like we had a chance to win this if we finish well."

Next up
The Eagles finish a three-game road trip at Georgia State Jan. 20. The game will air live on ESPN3 at 2:15 p.m., and a point will be on the line in the Southern vs. State Rivalry Series, which State leads 6.5-0.5

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