National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
San Diego St. 72, Georgia Tech 56
When: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Where: Viejas Arena at Aztec Bowl, San Diego, California
Officials: # Kevin Brill, # Tommy Nunez Jr., # Larry Spaulding
Attendance: 12414
By The Sports Xchange

Sophomore guard Trey Kell made four 3-pointers and scored 18 points to help San Diego State knock off Georgia Tech 72-56 on Wednesday in San Diego to advance to the NIT Final Four for the second time in school history.

Senior forward Winston Shepard added 12 points and sophomore forward Malik Pope had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the second-seeded Aztecs (28-9). Senior center Skylar Spencer blocked three shots to raise his school-record total to 300 as San Diego State won for the 10th time in 12 games.

Senior guard Marcus Georges-Hunt scored 18 points for the fourth-seeded Yellow Jackets (21-15). Senior forward Charles Mitchell had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Georgia Tech, which lost for just the third time in 11 games.

The Aztecs will face fourth-seeded George Washington (26-10) in Tuesday's semifinals at New York's Madison Square Garden.

The score was tied at halftime but San Diego State never trailed in the second half. Georgia Tech went more than five minutes without a field goal and the Aztecs took advantage as freshman point guard Jeremy Hemsley's driving layup and Kell's straightaway 3-pointer gave San Diego State a 56-45 lead with 6:46 remaining.

Senior forward Nick Jacobs scored on the inside to move the Yellow Jackets within nine with 5:11 to play. Spencer's blocked shot led to Kell's breakaway dunk and junior guard Dakarai Allen added two free throws to make it 62-49 with 3:30 left.

A 3-pointer by Pope that narrowly beat the shot clock gave the Aztecs a 15-point edge with 1:18 remaining.

San Diego State jumped out to an 18-8 advantage just eight-plus minutes into the game. Georgia Tech got back into the game by making 9 of its final 10 field-goal attempts of the half and finally caught the Aztecs at 31 on two free throws by Georges-Hunt with 46.7 seconds remaining.
Top Game Performances
 
Georgia Tech   San Diego St.
Marcus Georges-Hunt 18 Scoring Trey Kell 18
Marcus Georges-Hunt 3 Assists Dakarai Allen 3
Charles Mitchell 12 Rebounds Malik Pope 10
Marcus Georges-Hunt 4 Free Throws Made Winston Shepard 4
Marcus Georges-Hunt 1 Steals Dakarai Allen 4
Nick Jacobs 2 Blocks Skylar Spencer 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Georgia Tech 56 44.0 2-10 10-14 8 28 5 3 13
San Diego St. 72 45.2 6-14 10-17 8 28 4 6 6