ATLANTA — Georgia State made 65.2 percent of its first-half shots and beat South Alabama 85-65 Monday night, overcoming 19 points from Antoine Allen and 16 from Augustine Rubit.
The win extended the Panthers’ school-record winning streak to 13 games and improved them to 16-6 overall and 9-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. South Alabama fell to 7-15 and 1-8.
Hot Start for the Panthers
Georgia State shot better than 72 percent from 3-point range in the first half, and its top three scorers combined to go 10-of-15 from beyond the arc for the game.
The Panthers built a 17-point lead with a 15-2 run midway through the first half. Manny Atkins started the run with a 3-pointer, the first of six straight scoring possessions for Georgia State, and Ryan Harrow scored seven points during the run, including the final basket.
Jaguars Chip Away
South Alabama held Georgia State without a field goal for 4:39 early in the second half as Rubit and Allen combined for 14 of the Jaguars’ first 19 points after the break.
An Allen 3-pointer cut the lead to 57-46 with 9:05 remaining, but the Panthers scored eight of the next 10 points and 14 of the next 19 to go up by 20 with 5:26 left.
Individual Leaders
Allen, a senior, shot 7-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from 3-point range. Rubit, also a senior, had 16 points and six rebounds. Ken Williams added 10 points, and Barrington Stevens III had a team-high five assists to go with five points.
R.J. Hunter led all scorers with 24 points on 7-of-9 shooting, including 5-of-6 from 3-point range. Harrow and Atkins scored 20 points apiece, and Curtis Washington added 10.
Graves on the Panthers’ Shooting
“Tonight we had a gameplan of not letting certain guys shoot 3s and laying off a couple of others, but unfortunately they were 8-for-11 from the 3s and the Harrow kid, who normally shoots 26 percent from 3, made three out of four and got them in a really good rhythm,” South Alabama head coach Matthew Graves said. “They’re very talented offensively and once they get going they’re hard to stop.”
“I felt like in the second half, we made a nice adjustment defensively and made it tough in that first 10-to-12 minutes,” Graves said. “We kept them off balance and kept attacking, but with a team like this at home, you can only take so many punches. They kept making big shots and big 3-pointers. When a team shoots 63 percent on you, you’re asking for a long night.”
Positives on Offense
“Our two seniors did what seniors are supposed to do on the road and it was good that they stepped up and shot a good percentage,” Graves said. “When Antoine takes good shots, he’s more than capable of making them and if he plays within the offense, he can really do some positive things for us.”
Graves said the Jaguars did a better job getting the ball inside to Rubit and Mychal Ammons, though he noted Rubit had three first-half turnovers.
“I was really encouraged offensively. We had 14 assists on 26 field goals, which is moving in the right direction, like we did in the last game,” Graves said. “We had nine turnovers in the first half and finished the game with 12, so we did a better job of taking care of the ball.”
Next: Troy
South Alabama travels to in-state rival Troy on Thursday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on 105.5 WNSP and WNSP.com.
