Georgia State women’ basketball drops road game to Morehead State, 74-72

Release from Georgia State Athletics:

Georgia State dropped a 74-72 decision to Morehead State Sunday at Johnson Arena.

The Panthers fell behind early at 15-2 by missing its first 11 shots of the game. But, GSU closed back to 27-23 at halftime and then came out and gained the lead at 33-29 four minutes into the second half.

Host Morehead (4-5) regained a double-digit lead at 60-49, but Georgia State kept chipping away and had it to six at 3:45. Morehead State got 10 consecutive free throws from Almesha Jones to secure its win.

Georgia State (3-3) saw plenty of positives today. One was a 43-32 rebounding advantage, sparked by 18 offensive rebounds. Another was freshman Makeba Ponder making 7 of 9 3-point shots in the second half. Yet another was 10 assists and 10 points from point guard Ashley Watson, who was filling in for Alisha Andrews today (coach’s decidison). GSU made 9 of 18 treys thanks to Ponder.

Ponder’s 21 points led Georgia State, with Kayla Nolan adding 16 points to go with seven rebounds and Watson providing her 10 points. Logan’s 14 rebounds led the defense.

Morehead’s margin of victory came as a result of 19 of 23 from the free throw line, with Jones making 12 of 14, including the last 10 in a row for a 26-points (24 in the second half). Shay Steele added 17 points and Eriel McKee 14 more.

“We played together and we fought hard today, but we simply couldn’t hit shots,” head coach Sharon Baldwin-Tener said. “It is tough to lose close games, but we’re going to have a good season and we’ll be back better as a result of today. We did some good things, like rebounding and hitting the offensive boards. Ponder can really shoot and Watson made things happen at the point today with her 10 assists. A loss is always tough but I can be proud of the team’s fight and effort today.”

Despite shooting 21.9 percent in the first half (7 of 32), GSU responded by shooting 53.1 percent in the second half (17 of 32).