App State men’s basketball fell to Georgia State 76-65 on Thursday night in Atlanta. 

Georgia State took control of the game right out of the gates, scoring the first nine points in the contest and sprinting to an early 23-3 lead. Eight different Panthers scored during the initial onslaught, while just seven Mountaineers scored the entirety of the game. 

The Mountaineers answered the blitz with an 8-2 run of their own, bringing the deficit to 25-11. Ensuing runs by both teams led to a 41-26 Georgia State lead at halftime. 

App State continued to show its fight in the second half, chipping away at the lead to make the deficit single digits by the 13:19 mark. With 8:23 remaining, it was just a seven-point ball game as Georgia State held a 56-49 lead. 

A subsequent 5-0 burst from the Panthers proved to be the dagger as the Mountaineers couldn’t narrow the gap anymore. Georgia State held on to win 76-65. 

Freshman wing Kendall Lewis had the best game of his young career, dropping a career-high 24 points and grabbing a game-high seven rebounds as well.  

Senior guard O’Showen Williams added 17 points, while junior Justin Forrest contributed 11 points and a game-high six assists. 

The Panthers were bolstered by their bench, which produced 28 points compared to the four the Mountaineer bench supplied. Georgia State also outrebounded the Mountaineers 41-29. 

App State (14-12, 8-7) will take on Georgia Southern (16-10, 10-5) in Hanner Fieldhouse on Feb. 15 at 4 p.m.