This loss will hurt for a while.
The Mocs simply did not shoot well from three point range, and Georgia State never wants to play anywhere but McKenzie Arena again. Georgia State shot phenomenally well over the course of the two day Dr Pepper Classic- hitting for season highs from the field both days. Today, they shot 54.5%, including 10 of 24 from three point range.
The Mocs shot well from the field, but only 23.5% from three point range.
Rebounding wound up even at 33. That's pretty decent, all things considered. The Mocs did not turn the ball over too much- only eleven times. For a change, the problems from the free throw line could be traced to the Mocs good free throw shooters. Ricky Taylor made just 4 of 8. Omar Wattad made 3 of 4, but missed a crucial one late in the game. Keegan Bell made just 1 of 2. That's a total of 8 of 14 from three of their best free throw shooters. They should make roughly 80%. If those Mocs had made 11 of 14 from the free throw line (78.5%) they would have been within one on their final offensive position.
Another problem was that the Mocs offensive possessions at the end of the game were focused entirely on three point shots. They already were not shooting well...and Georgia State was missing free throws. Why not take the two points and try to trim the lead to one possession and put more pressure on the Panthers to make their free throws down the stretch?
DeAntre Jefferson had 19 points and 8 rebounds. This was against a bigger, just as physical team. Jefferson is really starting to turn into one of those guys that cen be relied on to produce big numbers. He is putting up numbers that could make him one of the best big men in the SoCon this year. He made 9 of 10 free throws tonight. If that keeps up, then he really will be almost unstoppable.
Omar Wattad has 19 points. Keegan Bell had 15, and Ricky Taylor 16 to go along with Jefferson's 19. The rest of the team? Try 7 points. Not a good night from the role players on this team. Those are the four best players, and Early is the fifth. Early had a good night with seven rebounds, but just four points before fouling out. No one else remotely produced. Troy Cage, who had played so well against the NAIA schools, did not score, though he did have four rebounds. The Mocs missed Josh Odem being able to score five to ten points off the bench tonight. Cage needed to be that guy. He was not on this night.
All in all, this was a pretty unsatisfying end to what had been a good month. The Mocs are back to 7-7, and are just 2-7 in OOC games against D1 teams as they head to Austin Peay (one of those seven losses) on Monday night.
This game felt a lot like the Jackson State game. It was a home game against a team the Mocs were favored to beat. And the visitors shot the ball unbelievably well, and kept the Mocs from being able to win. However, the Mocs hung around in this one much better than they did against Jackson State. The Mocs are definitely getting better game by game. They are still 3-0 in the SoCon. This loss stings- but they still just need to get going on a big run in SoCon play and everything will be allright.
GO MOCS!
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