It’s premature to say the Georgia State offense has returned to form, but there were plenty of positive signs on Wednesday night that it’s getting closer.
The Panthers drained 12 3-pointers, the most against a Sun Belt conference opponent, and defeated a feisty Louisiana-Monroe team 82-70 to extend their winning streak to six games. Georgia State (14-10, 8-5 Sun Belt) has won eight of its last nine games.
Georgia State’s win, combined with losses by South Alabama and Arkansas State, secured one of the top four seeds and a a first-round bye in next week’s Sun Belt Conference tournament.
The 82-point outburst was the most GSU has scored against a Sun Belt opponent and the second-most against Division I competition this season. The Panthers have scored 79-plus in two of their last three games.
However, the 70 points was the most allowed since the Jan. 22 overtime loss to Coastal Carolina and was a concern for coach Rob Lanier.
“The ball went in the basket, so that was good,” Lanier said. “We weren’t real crisp in the first half, but the numbers in the second half look like we’d like them to look. I do think if we’re a little bit sharper, a little bit more on edge, take care of the basketball, it would look like what we want it to look like. If we could pair that with some really good defense, then certainly we could become formidable.”
The leading scorers were Justin Roberts and Corey Allen with 15 points and three 3-pointers apiece; Allen also had five rebounds and five assists. Eliel Nsosme had 14 points and feasted with seven baskets in the paint.
A big lift came from reserve Colin Moore, who made three from distance and scored a season-high 11 points. Moore has endured a star-crossed season plagued by injuries and COVID, but took advantage of extended playing time when Nelson Phillips was benched.
“I gave him an opportunity and he made the most of it,” Lanier said. “He hasn’t been himself but we know he has this in him. Its good for him and it’s good for the team to see that.”
The first half was close, with eight ties and six lead changes and Georgia State took a 36-35 advantage at halftime. GSU committed 12 turnovers, which led to 11 ULM points.
“I was disappointed in the first half,” Lanier said. “I didn’t think we played hard enough, with enough energy and we were sloppy with the ball. I thought the second half our energy was better.”
The second half was a different story. The Panthers broke open a three-point game with a 15-3 run that extended the lead to 65-50 with 9:21 left. Georgia State led by as many as 16 and never by fewer than 11 points. Lanier liked the ball movement, as Georgia State finished with 21 assists on 31 field goals.
Louisiana-Monroe (13-16, 5-12) was led by Andre Jones with 14 points, but he was deftly guarded by the Panthers, particularly Kane Williams, and saw his streak of consecutive games with 20 points stop at six. Jones made only one of his first 14 shots. Russell Harrison had 13 points and 12 rebounds and Thomas Howell scored 12 for the Warhawks, who have lost four in a row.
“We’ve won some games with our grit and hustle and tonight we won with our offense,” Lanier said. “But I think for us to play at the level we want to reach, we’ve got to be able to put the two together. That’s the challenge for us when we study this tomorrow and in preparation for Friday.”
Georgia State will complete the regular season on Friday against Louisiana. It will be the last game played in the GSU Sports Arena, as the team will begin next season in the new Convocation Center.
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