GSU survives Samford for 2nd victory

Reserve Jihad Ali scored a team-high 20 points to push Georgia State (2-3) past Samford 55-47 at the Pete Hanna Center in Birmingham on Tuesday.

It was the second victory in a row for the Panthers, who collected their first road win for new coach Ron Hunter.

Ali hit 7-of-12 from the field, including 3-of-6 3-pointers, finishing two points shy of a career-high set against George Mason last season.

“As coaches, you always want to play well and get the victory,” Hunter said. “Sometimes you have to learn to win when things do not necessarily go your way … as was the case tonight. We did not play well, but we were able to do the things we needed to for the win.

“I am proud of the defensive effort we gave again tonight. This is the second straight game that we have held a team to 50 points or fewer and that is not easy to do. If we keep playing great defense and getting the rebounds that we are getting, the scoring will come.”

Notable

• Senior Josh Micheaux finished one rebound shy of his second double-double in a row, scoring 12  and pulling down nine rebounds. He also had three assists.
• Samford fell to 0-3.
• Sophomore Devonta White opened the game with back-to-back 3-pointers for the Panthers and he finished with 11 points and six assists.
• GSU had a dominating rebound advantage in the first half of 25-12.
• Georgia State will return home to face Liberty at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Sports Arena.