ATLANTA (AP) -- Lewis Clinch scored 22 points and Georgia Tech rallied in the second half to hold off Georgia State, 72-67, Wednesday before a crowd of 3,279 at the Georgia State Sports Arena.
Behind 20 points from Leonard Mendez, the Panthers (2-5) led by as many as eight points in the second half before Clinch hit a game-tying three-pointer and then a jumper in the lane to put the Yellow Jackets (4-4) ahead, 58-56, with six minutes to play. That bucket capped a 13-5 lead and gave Tech its first lead of the second half.
Mendez made two free throws to tie it up again, but Zack Peacock scored for Tech on the inside, and the Jackets led the rest of the way.
Georgia State's last chance came after Peacock was whistled for a technical with 2:01 remaining. Mendez made two free throws to pull the Panthers within 64-62, and they got the ball back with six seconds left on the shot clock but were unable to get off a shot.
Clinch wrapped it up at the foul line, hitting a pair of free throws with 3.7 seconds remaining to seal the win.
“I don't want to take anything away from the kids because they gave a very valiant effort. We played well against a good Georgia Tech team, but we are not looking for moral victories; we are trying to win every time we step on the floor,” said Georgia State head coach Rod Barnes.
“We had some guys step up tremendously tonhight, but there is still much room for improvement. I think we played very solid in the first half, until foul trouble and our lack of defensive presence hurt us down the stretch.”
Mendez was one of three double-figure scorers for the Panthers, who got a career-high 14 points from Kevin Lott and 12 points and eight rebounds from Rashad Chase. Freshman point guard D.J. Jones handed out nine assists for Georgia State.
Peacock added 17 points for Georgia Tech.
“I think we are making strides each game, but we are far from being at the level we want to be,” said Barnes. “We have teams in our conference beating ACC and SEC teams on a daily basis, and that's the level we are trying to get to.”
Looking for the first signature win of Barnes' tenure, Georgia State was hosting Georgia Tech for the first time since 1973 even though the Atlanta schools are only a couple of miles apart.
“Rod Barnes, I know, is going to do a great job,” said Tech head coach Paul Hewitt. “They were a typical Rod Barnes team. They are physical, they play with some toughness, and they're just going to get better.”
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