JONESBORO, Ark. (1/11/19) – Despite being out-rebounded 52-to-28, Arkansas State once again found its stroke at the free-throw line, going 13-of-15 in the fourth quarter, to earn a hard-fought 69-62 victory against Georgia Southern on Saturday at First National Bank Arena.
 
The Red Wolves (6-9, 3-1 SBC) shot 45.3 percent from the floor (24-of-53) while dishing out 18 assists on those 24 made baskets to help oust the Eagles (5-10, 2-2) for their third straight victory. Three players scored in double figures for A-State, led by 17 points from Peyton Martin, who shot 6-of-7 from the field and 5-of-7 at the charity stripe.

"Resilient effort again today, we gave up too many offensive rebounds but we defended the three in the second half," head coach Matt Daniel said. "We played good defense without fouling and kept them off the free-throw line. We made free throws and we had 18 assists on 24 field goals. That's pretty much the game. I'm pleased with it and I'm glad to be 3-1 to start league play. We have big week ahead of us with Appalachian State coming in here and then we have to go to Little Rock."
 
Jireh Washington and Morgan Wallace scored 15 points each, with 11 of Washington's points coming in the second half. Wallace again led A-State in the rebounding column, bringing down seven boards while Washington dished out six assists.
 
A-State also forced 18 or more turnovers for the fifth straight game and for the seventh time in eight outings, earning 22 takeaways. The Red Wolves' defense held Georgia Southern to 35.7 percent from the floor (25-of-70), including 25.9 percent from three-point range (7-of-27).
 
Tatum Barber led Georgia Southern with a double-double off the bench, scoring 20 points to accompany 10 rebounds, while Jaiden Hamilton added 10 points. Tsubasa Nisbet brought down 11 rebounds to lead all players.
 
The Eagles opened the contest on a 5-0 run before Jada Ford uncorked a three to end the early run. After Georgia Southern scored a couple of inside buckets to lead 9-3, A-State rattled off nine straight, including a pair of Payton Tennison threes to lead 12-9 and force the Eagles to use a timeout.
 
A-State would not relinquish the lead in the quarter, answering every Georgia Southern score to lead 17-16 after the opening 10 minutes.
 
Georgia Southern reclaimed the lead with 8:19 to go in the half on a three by Hamilton just before Wallace tied it up at 21-all with a layup. That score was the beginning of a 6-0 run that gave the Red Wolves a 25-21 lead. Barber and Mya Burns then hit back-to-back threes to put the Eagles back ahead 27-25 with under five minutes to go in the half.
 
The Eagles would stretch that lead out to 31-25, but could not attain more than a two-score advantage for the rest of the half, taking a 39-35 lead into the locker room.
 
A-State came out of the locker room on a 7-0 run, starting with a three-point play by Washington cut the deficit down to one before Wallace hit a pair of layups to put the Red Wolves ahead 42-39 and force an Eagles timeout with 8:26 left in the third.
 
That 11-0 run to begin the second half was ended when the Eagles scored six straight to pull it to within one with under three minutes left in the quarter. Martin broke the scoreless stretch with a layup off the glass with 2:25 to go. The Eagles would score a layup with four seconds left in the quarter to make it 48-47 A-State after three quarters.
 
The fourth quarter, as it was for nearly the whole game, was close with neither team holding more than a two-score lead. After a layup put Georgia Southern ahead with 1:21 to play, the Red Wolves closed on an 8-0 run, with six of those eight points coming at the free-throw line to help A-State hold the lead and take down the Eagles 69-62. Ford knocked down the final four free throws to close out the contest.
 
Arkansas State returns to action Thursday, Jan. 16, with a 7:00 p.m. home game against Appalachian State, which closes out a three-game home stand. The game will be aired live on ESPN+ while the broadcast can be heard on the EAB Red Wolves Radio Network on 95.3 The Ticket.

For the latest on the A-State women's basketball program, follow @AStateWB on Twitter and @astatewbb on Instagram, while also liking the team's Facebook page at Facebook.com/RedWolvesWBB.