@OspreyWBB Suffers Road Loss to Georgia State

Saturday, December 5

Atlanta, Ga.

2:00 p.m.

University of North Florida

Georgia State

12/5/2015 5:32:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Box Score (PDF)
ATLANTA, Ga. – Despite outscoring Georgia State in the second half, the North Florida women's basketball team fell to the Panthers on the road, 76-63. Four players reached double figures for the Ospreys in the loss.

Sophomore Taru Madekivi kicked start the Osprey offense and connected on three first half three-pointers. She scored 11 of her 13 points in the first 20 minutes of play and it marks the second-straight game in which she has scored 10 or more points Her role shifted in the second half as she dished out five of her career-high six assists.

Junior Claire Ioannidis matched her teammate's game-high of 13 points on 5-13 shooting. All three of her three-pointers made came in the second half of play and she came up with a game-high four steals. Sophomore Sierra Shepherd got into double figures for the third-straight game adding 12 points.

Junior Kadesia Johnson rounded out the Osprey double-digit scorers by adding 11 points. She registered her first career double-double by pulling down a career-best 11 rebounds. She has now collected eight or more rebounds in four of her last five games.

Georgia State (3-4) pieced together a balanced scoring attack and used 10 different players for 10 or more minutes. Of their 76 points, 38 came from the bench and only one player reached double figures. Astaja Tyghter led the Panthers in scoring with 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting. She also had a team-best seven rebounds.

The Panthers never trailed in the contest and began to pull away early in the final period. North Florida chipped away at a 13-point deficit in the third quarter and got it down to just eight to begin the fourth. Just as North Florida pulled within six points on a Kadesia Johnson layup with 9:30 left in regulation, the Panthers ripped off a 9-0 run over the next two minutes to make the score 62-47, their largest lead of the game.

A key contributor to Georgia State's success was their ability to rebound the basketball. The Panthers held a 42-26 advantage on the boards which included 17 on the offensive end. The second chance opportunities lead to 13 points for the Panthers.

The Ospreys will return home on Saturday as part of a day/night doubleheader with the men's team. The women will take on Trinity Baptist at 3:00 p.m. and will be followed by the men at 7:00 p.m. against Coastal Georgia.