Keith Michlig/GSW Sports Information
AMERICUS — The Georgia Southwestern men’s basketball team hung with No. 8 Augusta State Thursday night, but could not overcome the Jaguars' 61 percent accuracy from the field in a 76-65 defeat.
The Hurricanes were even with the Jaguars for the opening seven minutes of the contest before the Jaguars went on a 20-3 run to take a 30-13 advantage with 6:54 remaining in the first half.
Augusta St ate (16-2, 8-1 PBC) had a 14-minute stretch in the first stanza where they connected on 12-consecutive field goals which included two 3-pointers. ASU shot 67 percent in the first half and led 41-26 at intermission.
The Jags led by as many as 20 midway through the second half before GSW chipped away over the final 13:54, but could get no closer than 11.
ASU doubled up GSW on the boards (32-16), outscored the Hurricanes in the paint (34-20) and got 25 more points from their reserves (32-7).
GSW's Chris Rawls led all scorers with 24 points and connected on 16 of 20 free-throw attempts. Marcus Scott added 17 points and six rebounds, while Evan Mobley added 11. The Hurricanes shot 48 percent in the second half and 42 percent overall.
Alex Smith paced Augusta State with 15 points and six rebounds, connecting on 13 of 14 free-throw attempts. Ben Madgen pitched in 14 points and Franck Ndongo tallied 13.
The Hurricanes (5-13, 1-7) host Lander on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
