Field Level Media
Nov 27, 2019
Anthony Edwards scored 24 points, including the game-winning, buzzer-beating 3-pointer, and the Georgia Bulldogs avoided an 0-3 finish at the Maui Invitational when they held off Chaminade 80-77 on Wednesday.
Georgia (5-2) and the Division II host Silverswords went back-and-forth for much of the game, with the Bulldogs holding a one-point lead at halftime.
Behind 23 points from Tyler Cartaino and 24 points from Andre Arissol, the Silverswords (2-3) led for more than seven minutes, including through a few stretches of the second half.
A Cartaino bucket in the lane with 4:36 remaining pulled Chaminade within one point; Arissol hit a jump shot with 3:57 left that again cut the margin to a single point.
Arissol made six 3-pointers on the night, and his last one tied the game at 77 with nine seconds left.
As Chaminade rallied down the stretch, Rayshaun Hammonds repeatedly had the answer for Georgia. Hammonds, who finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds, forced the win-sealing five-second violation on Chaminade's last-ditch inbounds pass attempt.
Edwards finished with eight rebounds.
Sahvir Wheeler and Toumani Camara both scored nine points for the Bulldogs.
Georgia struggled to protect the ball, committing 19 turnovers. Chaminade capitalized with 23 points off the takeaways. The Silverswords also flourished in the paint with 36 points.
Kendall Small contributed 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds for Chaminade.
The Bulldogs exploited their athletic advantage, pushing the tempo off rebounds -- where Georgia had a 45-26 advantage -- to score 23 fast-break points. Georgia also turned 19 offensive rebounds into 23 second-chance points.
Georgia opened the Maui Invitational undefeated, but trailed by double-digits for almost the duration of an opening-round loss to Dayton. The Bulldogs battled back from a 28-point deficit before ultimately falling on Tuesday to Michigan State.
Seeking just its ninth all-time win in the Maui Invitational, Chaminade recovered from a lopsided loss in the opening-round against Kansas to stay competitive with UCLA for 30 minutes on Tuesday.
--Field Level Media