PENSACOLA, FLA. – Georgia State and Arkansas State won their opening-round games on Tuesday at the Pensacola Bay Center to advance to the second round of the 2023 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Women’s Basketball Championship.
The Panthers topped South Alabama 59-44, while Arkansas State pulled ahead over ULM, 76-65.
The second round of the Sun Belt Women’s Basketball Championship will take place Wednesday with four games beginning at 11:30 a.m. CT. All four games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Game 1: (12) Georgia State 59, (13) South Alabama 44 [Box Score]
Mikyla Tolivert and Deasia Merrill combined for 35 points and 14 rebounds to lead No. 12 seed Georgia State to a 59-44 win over 13
th-seeded South Alabama. Georgia State (12-20) earned its first ever win in the Sun Belt Championship to advance to face No. 5 seed Old Dominion Wednesday at 2 p.m. CT.
Tolivert had 19 points, six rebounds and seven assists, while Merrill contributed 16 points and eight rebounds. The Panthers defense held South Alabama to just 25 percent shooting from the field as Georgia State earned its largest margin of victory against a Sun Belt foe all season.
After trailing 12-8 after one quarter, Georgia State ended the first half with a 13-4 run to take a 29-21 lead into the locker room. The Panthers took control of the game in the final five minutes of the third quarter, going on a 12-2 run to open a 46-29 lead. Georgia State forced seven turnovers in that stretch. Georgia State outscored the Jaguars (7-23) 38-17 over the second and third quarters. South Alabama answered with a 7-0 run to pull within 46-36 early in the fourth period but they could never get within single digits.
Zay Dyer added 11 points for the Panthers and Tehya Lyons chipped in with four assists off the bench. Georgia State shot 44 percent for the game, including 36 points in the paint.
Game 2: (11) Arkansas State 76, (14) ULM 65 [Box Score]
Arkansas State used a big third quarter to pull away from ULM on its way to a 76-65 victory.
A-State (12-18), the No. 11 seed, won its first game at the Sun Belt Conference Championship since 2017 while collecting its fourth victory over its last five outings. The Red Wolves will now face No. 6 Georgia Southern tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. in the tournament’s second round.
Arkansas State was led by four players scoring in double figures, including Izzy Higginbottom with a game-high 19 points. The Sun Belt’s Newcomer of the Year, Higginbottom finished with at least 19 points for the fifth consecutive game.
Mailyn Wilkerson added 16 points for the Red Wolves, while Lauryn Pendleton and Anna Griffin finished with 13 and 10, respectively.
The Red Wolves finished with a .426 field goal percentage in comparison to the Warhawks’ .382 mark. Although ULM (7-23) held a 44-37 advantage on boards, A-State had three fewer turnovers and turned 14 ULM miscues into 16 points.
The first half featured two ties and two lead changes prior to Arkansas State taking a 35-29 lead into the break. The third quarter saw the Red Wolves outscore the Warhawks 27-13 before their lead swelled to as much as 24 points in the fourth quarter.
2023 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Women’s Basketball Championship
Tuesday, February 28
Game 1 – (12) Georgia State 59, (13) South Alabama 44
Game 2 – (11) Arkansas State 76, (14) ULM 65
Wednesday, March 1
Game 3 – (8) Marshall vs. (9) Coastal Carolina – 11:30 a.m. CT
Game 4 – (5) Old Dominion vs. (12) Georgia State – 2:00 p.m. CT
Game 5 – (6) Georgia Southern vs. (11) Arkansas State – 5:00 p.m. CT
Game 6 – (7) Louisiana vs. (10) App State – 7:30 p.m. CT
Friday, March 3
Game 7 – (1) James Madison vs. Winner Game 3 – 11:30 a.m. CT
Game 8 – (4) Troy vs. Winner Game 4 – 2:00 p.m. CT
Game 9 – (3) Southern Miss vs. Winner Game 5 – 5:00 p.m. CT
Game 10 – (2) Texas State vs. Winner Game 6 – 7:30 p.m. CT
Sunday, March 5
Game 11 – Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8 – 11:30 a.m. CT
Game 12 – Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10 – 2:00 p.m. CT
Monday, March 6
Game 13 – Winner Game 11 vs. Winner Game 12 – 1:00 p.m. CT