ATLANTA – Sam McDaniel and Michael Ertel combined for 44 points to lead ULM to a 90-82 overtime victory at Georgia State Saturday afternoon (Feb. 10), ending the Panthers' 10-game winning streak. It marked ULM's second overtime win in three days, as the Warhawks completed their first Sun Belt road sweep since February 2016.
 
ULM (11-12, 5-7 Sun Belt) put together a 9-0 run to take a 17-7 lead on a 3-pointer by Travis Munnings from the left corner with 12:07 left in the first half. Roderick Taylor scored a layup, off a terrific feed from Marvin Jean-Pierre, as the Warhawks moved out to a 14-point lead at 30-16 with 6:27 remaining in the opening half. ULM dominated the first 20 minutes and led 47-36 at the intermission.
 
Sam McDaniel scored 15 first-half points, hitting 6-of-8 field-goal attempts including 3-of-5 three pointers. As a team, ULM shot 75 percent (18-of-24) from the floor in the first half, including 60 percent (9-of-15) from behind the 3-point arc, and outrebounded the Panthers, 15-10.
 
McDaniel's 3-pointer from the top of the circle gave ULM its largest lead at 57-41 with 16:40 left in the second half. The Warhawks matched their biggest lead at 60-44 as Jean-Pierre connected on a 3 from the top of the circle with 15:41 to play. A put-back by D'Marcus Simonds, off his own missed shot, sparked a 13-2 spurt as Georgia State (19-7, 10-3) cut its deficit to five at 62-57 on a jumper by Isaiah Williams from the left side of the lane with 9:17 remaining. ULM made just 1-of-8 field-goal attempts and committed two turnovers during that 6:24 stretch. The Panthers rallied to tie the score at 73 on Devin Mitchell's 3-pointer from the left wing with 42 seconds left in regulation. McDaniel buried a 3-pointer from the top of the circle with 31 seconds on the clock to give the Warhawks a 76-73 lead, but Simonds answered five seconds later with a layup and made 1-of-2 free throws with 10 seconds remaining to tie the score at 76. Jordon Harris missed a potential game-winning layup with 1 second left.
 
ULM took the lead for good at 80-78 on Michael Ertel's pull-up jumper in the lane with 3:38 to play in overtime. Ertel followed with a 3-pointer from the top of the circle as the Warhawks extended their lead to 83-78 with 3:15 on the clock. Harris delivered a 3 from the right wing as ULM built an 89-82 lead with 1:07 left in the extra session. The Warhawks hit 5-of-7 shots from the field in overtime, including 3-of-5 3-pointers, while outscoring Georgia State, 14-6. The Panthers went 2-of-8 from the floor in overtime, including 0-for-3 from 3-point range.
 
ULM improved to 7-0 on the season when shooting 50 percent or better from the field, hitting 57 percent (34-of-60) against Georgia State, including 17-of-38 3-pointers (45 percent). The Warhawks featured a balanced scoring attack, as four players reached double figures. ULM also outrebounded the Panthers, 37-34.
 
"This is the first time we've beaten Georgia State here since it joined the league," ULM head basketball coach Keith Richard said. "There were so many storylines in this game. The biggest one is: I told them before the game that we needed to hit double-figure 3-point shots to give ourselves a chance to win the game. We made 17 and those went a long way toward determining the outcome of the game. We went through some scoring draughts in the second half, but we encouraged them to continuing taking those 3-point shots.
 
"It was a physically heroic effort; playing two overtime games in three days. Our players fought tooth and nail and found a way to win the game.
 
"We've won four of our last five games, so we're doing something right," Richard continued. "The season is a journey; a journey to find a way to play your best basketball. It was a great road trip, and we're playing our best basketball of the season during the second half of the league schedule."
 
McDaniel recorded his second double-double of the season and eighth of his career, finishing with 23 points and 12 rebounds. He connected on 9-of-14 field-goal attempts, including 5-of-10 from behind the 3-point arc. His nine field goals marked a career high.
 
Ertel, who scored eight of his 21 points in overtime, hit 8-of-13 shots from the floor, including 3-of-6 3-pointers. He also added five rebounds and a season-high six assists.
 
"Sam McDaniel made some big shots in the first half and really got us going offensively," Richard said. "He also hit a pull-up jumper (with 8:46 left in the second half) that killed a scoring draught for us in the second half. That shot stopped our bleeding and slowed their momentum."
 
"Michael Ertel is learning every game and growing as a player. He stepped up and scored eight points in overtime … on the road and in a hostile environment. Michael didn't really experience these things in high school, so this is all beautiful stuff."
 
Munnings turned in another solid all-around performance with 16 points, nine rebounds and five assists in 45 minutes while Harris came off the bench to match his season high with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 3-of-7 from 3.
 
"Once again, Travis Munnings played like a warrior," Richard said. "He played all 45 minutes and nearly posted another double-double. He hit a big 3 in overtime to make it a two-possession game. Travis played very well on this road trip.
 
"Jordon Harris hit a big 3 late in overtime. He missed a driving layup at the end of regulation, so it was great to see him bounce back and contribute a big 3 in overtime."
 
Jean-Pierre contributed nine points, five rebounds and a career-high eight assists.
 
"Marvin Jean-Pierre had two tough, defensive assignments in back-to-back games on this road trip," Richard said. "He was asked to guard (Georgia Southern's) Tookie Brown Thursday night, and two days later, he drew D'Marcus Simonds as his assignment. That demands complete focus the entire time you're on the defensive end of the floor. It can be a frustrating assignment too when calls don't go your way. No one else wants that job, but Marvin sacrificed himself to better the team. He's that kind of player."  
 
Simonds paced Georgia State, setting career highs for points (39) and rebounds (12). He made 15-of-27 shots from the field and 8-of-12 free-throw attempts. Simonds scored 22 second-half points.
 
Jordan Session also posted a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. In addition, the Panthers got 11 points from Malik Benlevi and 10 from Isaiah Williams.
 
Next week, ULM returns to Fant-Ewing Coliseum to entertain UT Arlington on Thursday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. and Texas State on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 2 p.m.