Postgame radio interview with Tre Cobbs

Postgame radio interview with Brian Burg

STATESBORO – Georgia Southern's Tre Cobbs scored the game-winner on a driving layup with 10.9 seconds left in overtime, and the Eagles forced two misses at the other end to preserve a 74-73 Sun Belt men's basketball win over UTA Saturday afternoon in Hanner Fieldhouse.

The Eagles trailed by one after a pair of missed free throws by the Mavericks with 20.6 seconds left, and Cobbs got the ball on the right wing, drove into the lane and finished with his right hand. 

UTA called timeout and put the ball in the hands of David Azore, who finished with a game-high 33 points to go along with nine rebounds and made all five of his 3-point attempts. Azore dribbled into the lane and pulled up for a jumper that was contested by Eagle Kaden Archie and fell short of the rim. Teammate Patrick Mwamba rebounded the air ball and tried to lay it in but hit the front of the rim. Time expired in the ensuing scramble for the ball.

Eagles of the Game 
Kamari Brown led four scorers in double figures with 16 points, and Gedi Juozapaitis netted 15. Cobbs finished with 10 points, five assists and two rebounds, and Andrei Savrasov collected 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and a block. 

Key Moments 
The Eagles trailed by four points in the extra session after an Azore pull-up jumper, but Brown nailed a triple from the wing on the Eagles' trip down the floor, trimming the margin to 73-72 with 31.6 seconds left. The Eagles fouled Javon Levi with 20.6 seconds to go, and he missed both free throws, setting the stage for Cobbs' game winner.

Georgia Southern (8-6, 1-2) scored eight straight points by four different players and opened a 54-40 lead on a Cam Bryant runner with 9:32 left in regulation.

Azore and Brandyn Talbot knocked down consecutive triples to keep UTA (7-8, 3-1) within striking distance and the Mavericks cut the margin to two points on a Nicolas Elame layup off of a turnover with 18.3 seconds left. Juozapaitis knocked down 1 of 2 free throws with 11.4 to play for a 65-62 lead, but Levi's contested triple from the wing rimmed in with 0.2 on the clock to send the contest to overtime.

Stats and Notes
- Georgia Southern held UTA to 38 percent shooting from the field, and improved to 4-1 in overtime games under head coach Brian Burg.
- It was the first meeting between the two teams in Hanner since Dec. 21, 2019.
- Georgia Southern was without one starter because of COVID-19 protocols.

Up Next
The Eagles are scheduled to travel to Troy Thursday and South Alabama Saturday.  The games will air on the GS Radio Network and ESPN+.