Sophomore Liv Fuller hit a buzzer-beating layup on an out-of-bounds play with 1.5 seconds remaining to lift Georgia Southern women's basketball to a come-from-behind 57-55 victory over App State on Wednesday evening at the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center.
The Eagles improved to 13-17 overall and 5-12 in the Sun Belt, while App State falls to 13-15 overall and 9-8 in the league.
With the score tied at 55-all, the Eagles had the basketball with the shot clock turned off. Senior Bukky Akinsola drove to her right and her pass intended for Indya Green under the basket was deflected out of bounds by App State with 1.5 seconds left. Underneath the basket, Akinsola then found Fuller on the left side of the basket for the game-winning layup.
Neither team shot well from the field in a defensive first half as App State led, 25-20, at the break. The Mountaineers then hit their first eight shots from the floor in the third quarter to build its largest lead of the game, 43-29, with 4:16 left to go in the period.
The Eagles brought in a new lineup and began to press, resulting in back-to-back baskets from Bukky Akinsolathat sparked a 9-0 run, ending the third quarter down by only five, 43-38.
Akinsola's pull-up jumper with 2:40 remaining in the fourth tied the game at 51-all, bringing the Eagles all the way back and setting the stage for the late-game heroics.
Indya Green led the Eagles offensively with her eighth double-double of the season, scoring 20 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Nicole Gwynn added 10 points off the bench. App State was led by Zada Porter's game-high 22 points.
Eagle of the Game
Fuller came off the bench to play 19 minutes and tied her career high with six points - none bigger than the game-winning layup at the end. She added five rebounds and was +14 for the night, one of the major factors in the Eagles overcoming a 14-point second-half deficit.
Stat of the Game
Georgia Southern held a 22-2 advantage on the offensive glass against the Mountaineers, resulting in a 15-2 edge in second chance points.
Quotables
Head coach Hana Haden on the comeback win
"Really proud of the grit that our team showed today. Winning a game while shooting 33 percent from the field, 10 percent from three, you don't typically win the game with those kind of stats. Credit to our players coming off the bench, they came up huge down the stretch. Being ready for their moment and Liv with the big time game winner. We're really proud of them."
On the game-winning play
"I've got to give Coach Fess [Paul Fessler] credit, he wanted to loop Liv around there and Liv's vertical, we trust in that, so we thought even if we had to throw it up to her, she could go get it. We knew they weren't going to leave Indya and we spaced our shooters in the corners. Then Liv made a big time play."
Sophomore Liv Fuller on the final play called for her
"It felt great knowing that Coach Fess had the confidence in me to get that play. It feels amazing."
Next Up
Georgia Southern wraps up the 2024-25 regular season on Friday, hosting Old Dominion for a 5 p.m. Sun Belt Conference contest at The Hill.