DAHLONEGA, Ga – A steal by Tyshaun Crawford with less than three seconds left propelled No. 20 Augusta men’s basketball over No.  19 North Georgia for its share of the top spot in the conference.  With the 72-71 victory, Augusta is now 22-5, 13-4 PBC while North Georgia is 20-5, and shares the same 13-4 conference record. 

#20 Augusta (22-5, 13-4 PBC)
FG% 44.4
3PT% 33.3
FT% 52.9

#19 North Georgia (20-5, 13-4 PBC)
FG% 46.2
3PT% 41.2
FT% 64.0

After Demitri Gardner hit the opening jumper, a three pointer by the Nighthawks was immediately answered by a made three-point bucket by Miguel Arnold. After missing a layup and snagging his own rebound, Crawford scored to tie the game at 19 with 10:00 minutes left to play. Tyree Myers buried a three on the next Jaguar possession, giving Augusta its largest lead of the half (22-19). North Georgia’s Hunter Sheldenhelm would bury a shot from beyond the arc less than a minute later to even the score again.

After battling back and forth, the home team would hold a slight 34-32 advantage at halftime. The game would feature 22 lead changes, with neither team leading by more than five points for the entire contest.  

With both teams knotted at 68 with 2:15 left in the game, North Georgia standout Frank Champion was called for a technical foul, sending Tyree Myers to the line for a single free throw that would give AU a 69-68 lead. Champion was fouled on the next possession, hitting both free throws to give North Georgia a one-point lead. A huge dunk off and offensive board from Ja’Queze Kirby gave Augusta back the one-point lead with 41 seconds left to play.

A made free throw from Shedenhelm knotted he game at 71 with 15 seconds left. Crawford would come in clutch, stealing the ball off an inbound pass and hitting one of two free throws for the 72-71 road victory.  

Augusta outscored North Georgia 42-26 off points in the paint. After having two games with limited scoring, Crawford seemed to return to form, leading the team with 26 points and 7 rebounds. Tyree Myers had 15 points, 3 steals, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Ja’Queze Kirby and Darren Lucas-White both had eight points.

The Jaguars play their final regular season home game on Saturday Feb 25th against Clayton State. Prior to the game, seniors Tyshaun Crawford, Miguel Arnold, Tyree Myers, and Darren Lucas-White will be honored. Live video and stats can be found at www.augustajags.com

Seeding and host responsibilities for the 2023 Peach Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament will be determined by Saturday’s games. Augusta is one of three teams in contention to host the tournament.

COURTESY AU ATHLETICS