CULLOWHEE, NC -- Six Panthers hit double figures on the way to a 90-57 victory on the road at Western Carolina on Tuesday evening.
Sophomore transfer Kaleigh Addie led the Panthers with 15 points and three steals, followed by Deasia Merrill, Mya Williams and Erin Turral with 12.
GSU posted the second-most 3-pointers (12) in program history after Kamryn Dziak and Crystal Henderson, who also scored double digits, tallied three 3-pointers each to lead the Panthers beyond the arc. The Panthers shot 57.1 from downtown.
Georgia State forced 24 Western Carolina turnovers, turning those takeaways into 28 points on the other end of the floor. Addie's three steals led the way for Georgia State.
How It Happened
After playing to a 13-13 tie early in the game, Georgia State went on an 11-0 run with 2:51 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Mikyla Tolivert, to take a 24-13 lead. The Panthers then lost some of that lead, but still entered the quarter break with a 26-19 advantage. Georgia State relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down four shots to account for 12 of its 26 points.
Georgia State kept its first-quarter lead intact before going on a 7-0 run starting at the 7:48 mark in the second period, highlighted by a three from Addie, to increase its lead to 33-21. The Panthers proceeded to tack on five points to that lead and enjoyed a 42-25 advantage heading into halftime. Georgia State forced six Western Carolina turnovers in the period and turned them into seven points.
Following intermission, Georgia State continued to expand its advantage, pushing it to 59-35 before going on a 5-0 run, punctuated by a three from Kamryn Dziak, to expand its lead further to 64-35 with 1:46 to go in the third. The Panthers held onto that lead for the rest of the frame and entered the fourth quarter with a 67-38 edge. Georgia State knocked down five three-pointers in the quarter to score 15 of its 25 total points.
Georgia State kept its lead intact before going on a 7-0 run, finished off by Addie's layup, to grow the lead to 74-40 with 7:33 to go in the contest. The Catamounts narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Panthers still cruised the rest of the way for the 90-57 win. Georgia State took advantage of its opportunities in the post, scoring 12 of its 23 points in the paint.
Game Notes
» The Panthers made over half of their attempts from three-point range, knocking down 12 of 21 shots.
» The Panthers never trailed after taking a 26-19 first-quarter lead.
» The Georgia State bench came alive by adding 48 points to its scoring output.
» Six Georgia State players scored 10 or more points.
» Kaleigh Addie and Erin Turral came off the bench to score 15 and 12 points, respectively.
» Georgia State had a 37-29 edge on the boards in the win.
» The Georgia State defense forced 24 turnovers.
» Kaleigh Addie led the Panthers with a game-high 15 points.
» Georgia State got a game-high five rebounds from Erin Turral.
