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ATLANTA - For a little while Wednesday, Southern Poly, the tiny NAIA team from Marietta, played on even terms with Georgia State, its NCAA Division I neighbor.

Cold, hard reality set in soon enough, however, as Georgia State went on a 23-3 run late in the first half to pull away for an 82-64 win over the Runnin' Hornets on Wednesday at the Georgia State Sports Arena.

Southern Poly (3-2) overcame a 9-2 Georgia State lead to pull even with the Panthers in the first half, even taking a slight lead on one occasion.

However, the hot shooting touch of Trae Goldston, as well as Georgia State's superior size and athleticism, took its toll on the Runnin' Hornets as the Panthers reeled off 12 unanswered points to propel the 23-3 run that essentially put the game out of reach.

"Their size made a big difference," Southern Poly coach Jeff Jones said. "They had 22 offensive rebounds. We found ourselves in mismatched situations with our guards caught down low with their big men. They had a run the last eight minutes of the game and I thought that (Georgia State) coach (Rod) Barnes did a great job of spreading the floor."

Barnes came away impressed by what he saw of Southern Poly.

"They're a good basketball team," Barnes said. "They can play the game. They have some good athleticism and quickness. We just had too much size for them and that made the big difference at the end."

Georgia State senior guard Leonard Mendez, a former Campbell High School standout, passed the 1,000-point milestone for his college career, scoring 12 to finish the game with 1,008 points.

"It means a lot to me," said Mendez, who became the 15th Panther to reach the plateau. "I knew I was four points away from 1,000 points going into the game, but I didn't focus on it. I just wanted to play a good game. Once I got it, it was a good feeling."

Nick Mattone scored 19 points, while Travis Smith added 13 points and Joe Posey had 11 points to lead Southern Poly.

Goldston led Georgia State (2-2) with 19 points, including five 3-pointers that helped the Panthers pull away.

Joe Dukes joined Mendez with 12 points apiece for the Panthers.

Georgia State jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a couple of jumpers by Dukes and a 3-pointer by Mendez, and led 9-2 when Posey hit back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the Panthers' lead to 9-8 with 13:42 remaining in the first half.

Georgia State was up, 11-8, with 12:54 left in the first half when James Fields hit both of his free throws and Jas Rogers scored on a layup to give Southern Poly a 12-11 advantage with 11:34 left.

The Panthers tried to pull away as they took an 18-14 lead, but Southern Poly bounced back with a jumper by Jarred Clark and a pair of free throws by Mattone to tie the game, 18-18, with 7:29 left in the first half.

However, a 3-pointer by Goldston ignited Georgia State, with a layup by Xavier Hansbro, another layup by Rashad Chase, a jumper by Fields and another 3 by Goldston put the Panthers on a 12-0 run that eventually mushroomed into a 23-3 run that put the Runnin' Hornets down 41-25 with 2:23 left.

Southern Poly never threatened after that, with Georgia State leading by as much as 20 in the second half.

Despite the loss, the game was a good experience for Jones and his Runnin' Hornets.

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