Georgia State Stuns Tennessee State on Buzzer Beater
Good morning everyone!-
Last night we had a guest sports writer stop by the Georgia State-Tennessee State game to capture the action and boy did he! Looks like GSU pulled off the win with a last minute jumper and Kevin Adler was there to cover the victory:
Georgia State topped Tennessee State 59-57 on a buzzer beating half court shot from Rashaad Richardson. Devonta White led the way for the Panthers with 19 points and Cameron Solomon added 10 points. Robert Covington was the leading scorer for Tennessee State with 13 points.
The Panthers went into the half with a one point lead over Tennessee State despite sloppy play and poor shooting. Georgia State was out-rebounded by 7 boards and shot 33 percent from the field compared to Tennessee State’s 37. Their defensive pressure and intensity forced Tennessee State to turn it over 8 times which was a major reason they were able to head into the locker room with a one point lead.
The second half was very much like the first in that both teams got after it defensively and baskets were hard to come by for each team. Georgia State led 46-44 with just under 7 minutes when they ran a beautiful pick and roll in which R.J. Hunter found James Vincent for the layup and the foul. Vincent made the free throw to finish off the 3 point play. This really fired up the Panthers as they clamped down defensively flustering Tennessee State and extending their lead to 51-44 with 4:53 left. Tennessee State then went on an 8-0 run to take a 52-51 lead with 2:24 left. Georgia State and Tennessee State traded baskets from that point on. The Tigers trailed by 1 with 7 seconds left on the clock when Deshawn Dockery slashed through the lane for a layup to give Tennessee State a 57-56 lead with just 2 seconds left on the clock. Georgia State called a quick timeout and head coach Ron Hunter drew up a play that he thought could get the Panthers a bucket and the win. Whatever Coach Hunter drew up in the huddle worked.
Manny Atkins inbounded the ball to half court where Rashaad Richardson used every inch of his 6’4’ frame to grab the ball out of the air and put up a desperation shot. Fortunately for Georgia State the shot went off the backboard and through the net to give them the win at the buzzer. Coach Hunter on the final shot “That’s a play I’ve had from Valparaiso when they beat Ole Miss in the tournament. It’s kind of a misdirection play. I’ve ran it maybe 20 times since I’ve been a head coach and we have never made it. The first time we actually made it but that’s actually our last second play”. The Panthers didn’t have a great night offensively but their defense was very solid in putting pressure on Tennessee State and forcing them to commit 13 turnovers. Coach Hunter on the defense “Since we’ve been here it’s been a trademark. It’s in our locker room. A theme, theme, theme that’s what we have got to be until our offense gets clicking. We were in the top 10 defensively last year in the country and in the conference. We have to do that again this year”. Georgia State will look to carry the momentum from this victory into their next game against South Alabama today.
-Kevin Adler
The Peach Review™