The Georgia State Panthers’ valiant comeback effort wasn’t enough as they lost at home to conference opponent Appalachian State Mountaineers 61-60 after Justin Forrest’s game-winning shot found the bottom of the basket on a fadeaway mid-range jumper in the waning seconds of the contest.
The game came down to the wire as the Panthers slowly chipped and clawed at the lead, going on a 21 to 7 run to tie the game late in the second half. Justin Roberts hit a clutch three-point jump shot to get everyone in the arena out of their seats to give the Panthers their first lead since the opening moments of the game. After Kane Williams snatched the ball away on a steal and was fouled, the arena was rocking as the Panthers looked to have pulled off a big-time comeback to end their slump.
The ensuing play proved to be costly for them as Williams turned the ball over on an inbounds pass. The Mountaineers’ Forrest was fouled giving App State the lead back. Roberts came up big yet again, driving to the rim for a tough finish, snagging the lead right back for the Panthers.
As time dwindled, the Mountaineers came down the court and let their star go to work. With the outstretched hand of the Panthers’ Corey Allen in his face, Forrest created space and came up big with under two seconds left on the clock, draining all of the life out of the GSU Sports Arena.
Guard Adrian Delph was on fire tonight, scoring a game-high 29 points and shooting 5-10 from the three-point line.
Overall it was a tough shooting night for Rob Lanier’s ball club, which only had eight players active.
Even in a close-fought game, the team shot an abysmal 25-66(37.9%) from the field and 6-25(24.0%) from the three-point line.
The backcourt trio of Williams, Roberts and Allen struggled to find their rhythm as they went for a combined 14-39(36%) from the field and 3-17(18%) from the three-point line.
In his post-game presser coach, Lanier described his team as “desperate” in terms of looking for a win during their now four-game losing streak.
“We’re a team desperate for a win”, said Lanier.
Even after a heartbreaking loss, Lanier is still proud of his team for putting themselves in a position to win.
“We found ourselves with our backs against the walls at various times in the game, and we found a way to give ourselves an opportunity to win, and I was really proud of the guys with the way we fought back,” said Lanier.
The Panthers’ next opportunity to get things back on track will be this Saturday at home against another Sun Belt foe in the Coastal Carolina University Chanticleers.
