Bergbau » including a would-be touchdown catch by Atki

AUBURN, Ala. -- Danjel Purifoy and Jared Harper each scored 19 points, Horace Spencer added 12 points and Auburn topped Georgia State 83-65 on Monday night in the opening round of the Cancun Challenge.Auburn (2-0) pulled away in the second half as its shooting, which had been an issue in the first 20 minutes, picked up. They shot 56 percent in the second half to put away the Panthers, who were undone by a combination of turnovers and cold shooting.I thought we were very stagnant in the first half, much better in the second half, Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. Its probably one of the better second-half defenses weve had. The defense was really good away from us tonight.Georgia State finished with 18 turnovers, which Auburn turned into 16 points.Purifoy was plagued with foul trouble early, and had to come out just three minutes into the game, and he didnt return for the rest of the half. But he scored 17 points in the second half to help propel the Tigers to a second consecutive win.The first half was tightly contested. Each team had trouble holding onto the ball, turning it over a combined 23 times -- 15 of which the Panthers were responsible for. Then, Harper canned two 3-pointers in the final two minutes to give Auburn a five-point lead at the break. It sparked the Tigers offense, and that carried over into the final frame.Every time they needed a play, they went to the point guard, said Georgia State coach Ron Hunter. I thought he was really, really special. He really set the tone for their team, you know, makes those other guys better.Jeremy Hollowell led Georgia State (1-1) with 20 points and four rebounds. Justin Seymour added 18 points and six rebounds for the Panthers.BIG PICTUREGeorgia State: The Panthers dropped their first game of the season, but theyll continue the Cancun Challenge with a chance to rebound.Auburn: Bruce Pearls squad keeps the undefeated start to the season rolling as his young team gains some much-needed experience.HE SAID ITHe was just all teeth. You couldnt get him to stop smiling, and thats something good to see because we got that win for him. He really wanted this win. -- Auburn forward Danjel Purifoy on center LaRon Smith, who played at Georgia State from 2012-14.HIGHLIGHT REELWith Auburn holding onto an 11-point lead and under four minutes remaining, guard T.J. Dunans picked off an errant pass and took it the length of the floor. He whipped a behind-the-back pass to a trailing Horace Spencer, who thundered home a monstrous two-handed dunk that sent Auburn Arena into a frenzy.UP NEXTGeorgia State travels to Purdue on Thursday to take on another Power 5 opponent.Auburn looks to start 3-0 this season when the Tigers host Eastern Kentucky on Thursday. Cheapest Air Jordan 5 .J. Jefferson has been charged with assaulting his girlfriend. Wholesale Jordan Retro 5 . The Croatian served 21 aces and hit 42 winners against Sijsling, who double-faulted to give Cilic a 4-3 lead in the deciding set. "All the players, they know me and they were really happy to see me and they were really happy that this is over for me," Cilic said. http://www.airjordan5nz.com/ . Coach Tom Thibodeau says the former MVP will probably start travelling with the team in the next few weeks. Rose tore the meniscus in his right knee at Portland in November and was ruled out for the remainder of the season by the Bulls. Cheap Jordan 5 Retro .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Wholesale Jordan 5 NZ . LOUIS -- Roman Polak was celebrating even before Alexander Steen scored the winning goal in Saturdays 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. ATLANTA -- Grambling State seized the opportunity when North Carolina Centrals Quentin Atkinson celebrated too much in the Celebration Bowl.Grambling State blocked an extra-point kick set back 15 yards by Atkinsons excessive celebration with just over two minutes left, holding off North Carolina Central 10-9 on Saturday in the bowl that decides bragging rights for historically black colleges and universities.Joseph McWilliams surged in and swatted Brandon McLarens 35-yard try with 2:14 remaining to preserve the Tigers edge.Down 10-3, the Eagles had a chance to pull even after Atkinson shook loose and caught a 39-yard touchdown pass from scrambling Malcolm Bell. But Atkinson took off his helmet while reveling with the crowd, drawing a personal foul penalty.I kind of felt fault for that, Atkinson said. I do want to apologize to my team for that because that was a selfish act. Im not selfish, but it was the heat of the moment and I was excited to bring the team back with an outstanding play.Bell called Atkinsons mistake kind of a bonehead play but said the team also was hurt by other mistakes in the game.North Carolina Central coach Jerry Mack said the longer extra point still should have been made if not for a missed block on McWilliams.Martez Carters 32-yard touchdown run to open the second half gave Grambling State (11-1) its first lead. The Tigers earned the bowl bid by winning the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship.The Eagles (9-3) won the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in Macks third year.Trailing 3-0 at halftime, Grambling State opened the third quarter with a run-first plan. Following five power runs by 240-pound running back Jestin Kelly, the 175-pound Carter looked extra-quick on his sharp cuts through the line on his touchdown run.Jestin Kelly, hes a ground-and-pound type guy, Carter said. He wore those guys down. Im just a home-run hitter, man. He wore them down and then they put me in. What else are you going to do? You take those blows from him and then try to take me.Carter had 109 yards rushing, two catches for 23 yards and a combined 71 yards on four punt and kickoff returns. He was named offensive MVP. Kelly added 65 yards rushing.The Tigers threw only one play-action pass for aa short gain on the touchdown drive.ddddddddddddGrambling States defense later set up more points. Arkez Cooper sacked Bell, forcing a fumble recovered by Malcolm Williams at the Eagles 25. The turnover set up a 26-yard field goal by Jonathan Wallace.McLarens 23-yard field goal provided the only points of the first half.THE TAKEAWAYGrambling State: The Tigers placed a cap on their continued strong progress made in three years under coach Broderick Fobbs, who won seven and nine games, respectively, in his first two years. Fobbs, who played for former coach Eddie Robinson, showed on the national stage the program has returned to prominence as a force among historically black colleges.North Carolina Central: Despite being a two-touchdown underdog, the Eagles played even with Grambling State, posting a shutout in the first half.QB NUMBERSBell completed 18 of 32 passes for 240 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. He had several passes dropped, including a would-be touchdown catch by Atkinson in the first half. Devante Kincade completed 15 of 31 passes for 149 yards with an interception for Grambling State.HERE TO STAYBoth coaches praised the second-year Celebration Bowl as the more attractive alternative to a possible spot in the FCS playoffs.It exceeded all expectations, Fobbs said. This deal is here to stay.Added Mack: The way weve been treated ... I would rather come back to this game next year.UP NEXTGrambling State: The Tigers will return a good talent base, including Kincade, as they try to defend their SWAC championship. Theyll need to replace six starters on offense and 10 overall. Key losses from the defense include noseguard Blain Winston and leading tacklers Guy Stallworth and Cooper.North Carolina Central: The Eagles must replace nine senior starters, including six on offense, as they look to defend their MEAC championship. Freshman Naiil Ramadan was listed as the top backup to Bell at quarterback. The Eagles also lose four of their five starting offensive linemen, with only left tackle Nick Leverett returning. The Eagles have not released their 2017 schedule. ' ' '