SAVANNAH, Ga.- Austin Lewis came into the contest with Edward Waters averaging just 2.5 points a game. But the junior from Jacksonville, Florida felt inspired when playing against his hometown team which led to him scoring a career-high 12 points to help Savannah State earn a 72-42 victory in front of 1,278 fans at Tiger Arena on February 17, 2024.
 
Austin finished the game going 5 of 7 from the field and making a pair of clutch 3-pointers. He also had two rebounds, one assist and one steal.
 
Savannah State held EWU scoreless for over six minutes to start the game as the Tigers opened with a 11-0 run.
 
During SSU's run, Chancellor Wilson got things started with a jumper, a dunk and a free throw which was followed by back-to-back layups by Qua King. Javonte Landy made the score 11-0 with a jumper at the 14:59 mark.
 
With Savannah State ahead 21-5, Austin went to work.
 
The 6-foot-2 guard hit back-to-back jumpers and followed that with a layup and a 3-pointer to increase SSU's advantage to 30-7 with 2:34 showing.
 
After a jumper by King, Lewis brought the crowd to its feet with a 3-pointer that gave the Tigers their largest lead of the first half at 35-9 with 46 seconds remaining.
 
Savannah State shot 55.1 percent from the field in the opening half as they took a 35-11 lead into the break.
 
Ahead by 24 early in the second period, the Tigers used a 10-4 spurt to open up a 47-17 cushion at the 12 minute mark, following a jumper by Ayjay Plain.
 
Leading 49-28, SSU had a 10-3 stretch that resulted in their largest lead of the night at 59-24 with 6:38 remaining, after a layup by King.
 
Edward Waters was able to trim their deficit to 27 but a 3-pointer at the buzzer by Khalil Grace pushed the Savannah State margin back to 30.
 
Although not everyone scored but all SSU players who were dressed saw action as they improved to 11-12 overall and 9-10 in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
 
Savannah State made 56 percent of their shots in the second half and finished the game shooting 55.6 percent while forcing 22 turning and out-rebounding EWU 35 to 23.
 
Wilson had 12 points and six rebounds for SSU while King added 10 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
 
Plain came off the bench to contribute nine points, six assists and six steals, Zion Davis had eight points, Jordan Mikel and Warner Davis both scored six points, Michael Swift chipped in four, Grace had three and Landy scored two.
 
Solomon Campbell had eight points for Edward Waters (10-15, 9-9 SIAC).
 
SSU traveled to Morris College on February 19 but will return to Tiger Arena on February 24 to face Albany State at 4 p.m.