Maten's 24 points push Georgia past Mississippi State

[February 15, 2017]  Junior forward Yante Maten scored 24 points, and Georgia rallied past Mississippi State in the second half of a 79-72 win Tuesday at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Ga.

Senior point guard J.J. Frazier scored all 17 of his points in the second half, fueling a strong closing 20 minutes by Georgia (15-11, 6-7 Southeastern Conference), which won its second consecutive game after a three-game slide.

Juwan Parker added 16 points for the home team.

Sophomore guard Quinndary Weatherspoon, freshman guard Lamar Peters and freshman guard Mario Kegler each finished with 14 point for Mississippi State (14-11, 5-8 SEC), which has lost three in a row and five of six overall.

Georgia opened the second half with a 12-3 run, capped by a Frazier 3-pointer that gave put hosts in front 40-35 with 14:29 to play.

Georgia maintained the lead the rest of the way but struggled to put away Mississippi State.

Mississippi State sophomore guard Xavian Stapleton hit a long 3-pointer that tied the game 54-54 with six minutes to play.

Georgia answered with a 12-3 run, with a Mike Edwards dunk extending the advantage to 66-57 and forcing Mississippi State to call timeout with three minutes left.

Georgia put the game away at the foul line and outscored Mississippi State 28-7 from the charity stripe.

Georgia Bulldogs forward Yante Maten (1) in action against Mississippi State Bulldogs guard Lamar Peters (1) during the second half at Stegeman Coliseum. Georgia defeated Mississippi 79-72. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hagy-USA TODAY Sports

Both teams got off to a cold-shooting start. Peters got Mississippi State going with a pair of 3-pointers, and Eli Wright had a steal and a breakaway dunk to put the visitors up 28-21. Georgia made several pushes but never regained the lead in the first half.

E.J. Datcher hit a layup off a nice pass from I.J. Ready right before the first-half buzzer, sending Mississippi State into intermission with a 32-28 lead.

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