ATLANTA (AP) Mason Jones banked in a 3-pointer from the right wing with one-tenth of a second left in overtime, helping Arkansas stay unbeaten with a 62-61 victory over Georgia Tech on Monday night.
Georgia Tech took its first lead since the midway point of the first half on James Banks’ short turnaround jumper with 22.3 seconds remaining, but Arkansas did not call timeout before Jones launched 25-footer to send the Yellow Jackets to their second straight loss.
Jones scored 24 points and Isaiah Joe had 13 for Arkansas (6-0), which won its first road game under coach Eric Musselman.
Banks had 20 points and 13 rebounds for Georgia Tech (2-2).
Neither team scored in the extra period before taking their final shots, and the game went to overtime after both teams missed a shot on their last two possessions of regulation. The Jackets tried an in-bound pass and tip for the 6-foot-10 Banks, but the ball bounced off his hands as the buzzer sounded.
Jose Alvarado, Georgia Tech’s starting point guard, was sidelined by an ankle injury for the second time in the last three games. Bubba Parham took Alvarado’s spot and had 10 points, two assists and a game-high six turnovers.
Arkansas took a nine-point lead, the biggest of the game, when Jones stole the ball from Parham and hit a free throw with 16:07 remaining. Georgia Tech went on a 12-4 run to pull within one on Evan Cole’s lay-in about four minutes later.
Michael Devoe banked in a shot on the left side and Parham hit two free throws as the Jackets twice tied the game, but they were down by seven at the 5:57 mark when Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner was called for a technical foul after Jones hit a baseline layup and drew a foul from Devoe. He hit the next three free throws for a five-point possession.
Arkansas forced 12 turnovers in the first half and outscored the Jackets 15-3 in points off miscues. Banks turned the ball over three times. Jones and Joe took turns stealing the ball from Parham for fast-break layups as the Razorbacks led by seven.
Arkansas was up 33-30 entering the second half.
BIG PICTURE
Arkansas: It wasn’t against a top-flight program, but the victory should give the Razorbacks a boost of confidence despite another off night from Joe, who went 4 for 15 from the field one game after he had five points against South Dakota.
Georgia Tech: Michael Devoe began the night as the ACC’s leading scorer, averaging 26 points per game, but he struggled against Arkansas’ lengthy guards, missing seven of his first nine attempts and finished with 12 points on 4 for 16 shooting.
SERIES
The Razorbacks snapped a five-game losing streak and improved to 2-5 against Georgia Tech.
UP NEXT
Arkansas: Hosts Northern Kentucky on Saturday and Austin Peay on Dec. 3.
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