Georgia State men’s basketball reached their 20th win for the third time in four seasons with the defeat of the Troy Trojans by a final of 75-64 from Trojan Arena in Alabama.
The win improves Georgia State’s record to 20-9 overall and 13-5 in the Sun Belt tying the Panthers with UL-Monroe and Georgia Southern for the top spot in the conference.
First Half
Georgia State forced turnovers early as two Troy miscues led to Curtis Washington and Ryan Harrow scoring early dunks, giving the Panthers an early 4-0 lead.
Junior Troy forward John Walton III answered with a dunk for the Trojans’ first points of the game.
The Panthers maintained their early two-point lead at 6-4 before Ryann Green made his first three, growing the lead to 9-4. A few seconds later, Markus Crider fouled Walton who made one of two from the line. Crider then contributed the Panthers’ third dunk of the game as the team upped its lead to 11-5.
Georgia State maintained its six-point lead with scores of 13-7, 15-9 and 17-11. The Panthers then forced a pair of Troy turnovers and embarked on a 9-0 run with Kevin Ware scoring his first five points. The lead became 26-11.
Troy answered with a 7-0 run as freshman guard Wesley Person scored a three. Junior guard Chris Bilbo as well as senior guard Musa Abdul-Aleem each scored two as the Trojans trimmed the Panthers’ lead to 26-18.
With the Panthers leading 28-20, Harrow and Crider each contributed layups, growing Georgia State’s lead to 32-20. Sophomore Troy guard Kelton Ford’s first two points got it back to a 10-point game at 32-22 before the Panthers went on a 5-0 run. Ware scored three more and Harrow contributed a layup. Georgia State led by a score of 37-22.
Bilbo later made a three, bringing Troy within a score of 37-25 and prompting a 30 second timeout by Georgia State. With seven seconds left, R.J. Hunter’s first two points of the game gave the Panthers a 39-25 advantage heading into halftime.
Second Half
The Panthers opened the second half with a 7-0 run as Green scored three more with Washington and Crider each notching dunks to improve their lead to 46-25. Walton then scored a couple of points off an offensive rebound, cutting the Troy deficit to 46-27.
With Georgia State leading 48-29, Crider fouled Ford who made one of two from the line. Bilbo turned the ball over leading to a Harrow two-point jumper as the Panthers’ lead became 50-30.
Shipes made one free throw after senior Troy forward Kevin Thomas fouled him as the Panthers’ lead became 51-30. Ford put in a layup and Thomas made a free throw after Session fouled him, cutting the lead to 51-33. Hunter quickly answered with a layup, making it a 20-point game again at 53-33.
Session’s third and fourth points made it a 22-point game at 55-33 before Hunter fouled Walton who made one of two from the line, making it a 55-34 game.
With the score at 57-36, Person increased his point output to 10, bringing Troy within 57-39 prior to Hunter making another two-point jumper.
Troy later went on a 6-0 run cutting their deficit to 59-45 as Abdul-Aleem scored three, Person scored two and Thomas made a free throw after Shipes fouled him.
The Panthers maintained their 14-point edge with scores of 62-48, 64-50, 66-52 68-54, 69-55, 71-57 and 73-59. Abdul-Aleem scored four consecutive points, closing the Trojans within 73-62.
Harrow increased his point output to 17, expanding Georgia State’s lead to 75-62. With 16 remaining, Abdul-Aleem upped his to 19, producing a final 75-64 score.
Georgia State’s final regular season road game will be Thursday at 8 p.m. vs. UL-Monroe.
| Georgia State | Troy |
|---|---|
| Harrow: 17 points, 7-12 shooting | Crider: 13 points, 6-10 shooting |
| Abdul-Aleem: 19 points, 9-11 free throws | Person: 12 points |
