AUGUSTA, Ga. – George Johnson matched his career high with 31 points, the most ever by an Augusta State player in an NCAA Tournament game, and Franck Ndongo had his second straight double-double of the tournament with 14 points and 13 rebounds to lead the top-seeded Jaguars to a 71-60 victory over fourth-seeded Queens in the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament Southeast Regional at Christenberry Fieldhouse.

Augusta State (30-3) rallied from a 15-point first-half deficit to equal the school record for wins in a season and advance to the Southeast Regional championship game for the fourth consecutive year. The Jaguars will face seventh-seeded Anderson (20-11), an 82-76 semifinal winner over Montevallo, in the championship game Tuesday at 7 p.m.

However, it was Queens (21-8) that looked ready to run away with the game early on. 

Ndongo's layup was Augusta State's only basket in the first 11 minutes of the game as Queens raced to a 17-2 lead. Preston Newlin got the Royals going with a three-pointer, Sean Eads capped the run with a trey of his own and Reggie Hopkins led the way with five points.

But the Jaguars responded with 17 unanswered points to grab a 19-17 lead. The turning point came on what was essentially a seven-point possession that pulled Augusta State within one. When Johnson was fouled hard as he made a driving layup, the officials ruled the foul intentional and awarded ASU two free throws and possession of the ball. Johnson hit both free throws after the foul, then swished a three-pointer to cap the seven-point swing and make the score 17-16. Johnson followed with another three-pointer to give the Jaguars their first lead, 19-17 with 5:01 left in the first half.

Johnson carried Augusta State in the first half, scoring 19 of the Jaguars' 28 points. Augusta State shot just 35.7 percent (10-28) from the field in the first half, but still took a 28-26 lead to halftime as Queens made just 37 percent of its shots (10-27).

Johnson continued to hit big shots in the second half, including a trio of crucial three-pointers. The senior from Arlington, Va., brought the partisan crowd of 1,733 to its feet with a trey that put the Jaguars up 48-42 with 9:34 to play. After Queens closed the gap to 48-46, Johnson beat the shot clock with a three-pointer to stretch the lead back to five.

He drained another three less than a minute later to give the Jaguars their biggest lead to that point, 54-46.

Augusta State opened its first double-digit lead when Ndongo made a nice reverse layup while being fouled with 2:43 remaining. Ndongo hit the free throw to complete the three-point play and stretch the lead to 63-53.

The Jaguars struggled from the free throw line, shooting 59.4 percent (19-32), but converted seven of nine down the stretch to seal the win. Johnson's two free throws with 1:04 left capped his career-high night and extended Augusta State's home winning streak to 48 straight games, the fourth-longest active streak in the nation.

Daniel Bailey led Queens with 16 points and Brent Evans pulled down nine rebounds. Hopkins added 15 points and six rebounds but made just three of 14 shots from the field.

Quotes

Augusta State Head Coach Dip Metress

"We got beat by Wingate by double digits (in a preseason scrimmage), and here we are in the regionals. I had to teach more. That was a long week, when we lost to Wingate and got bludgeoned by Georgia (in an exhibition game)."

"George (Johnson) got a couple of tough shots. Experienced players helped tonight. Playing a tough schedule put us in the situation to not quit. It was a fabulous effort."

"(Guard) Tye (Beal) definitely gets some credit. Tye did a great job guarding the premier player in our region."

"They don't mind being coached. That's why we are in the regionals. In this time of year there are no individual athletes, no individual accolades -- it's all about our team. We are going to have to play better on Tuesday."

"Its natural to be excited, just play off each other. It's a natural concept."

"Franck did a great job rebounding. The most double-doubles in one year – the ninth one."

Augusta State Senior Guard George Johnson

"We were down 17-2 and I didn't want to go home."

"The net looked like an ocean to me."

"Part of those bad shots were on me and I just had to step up. Tye did a heck of a job on Hopkins. Tye just maintained on him the whole game. Tye is one of the best players in the region."

"I am aiming for it all. I'm going for the national title. I felt like we had a few mental lapses. It's hard to beat five guys. We just play hard."

"I just went with the momentum. It was a wake-up call. That was when we got the momentum. We just picked it up."

"We all got in and we are all willing to do what it takes to win. We are winning as a team."

Queens Head Coach Wes Long

"It was a great game. It was hard-fought by two really good basketball teams. They had a few good runs at the end of the game. George Johnson was great and made some very hard shots."

"It took a seven-point possession to beat us and some amazing shots. I give George credit. I never thought we did a poor job. That is a credit to him (George Johnson). We played George well."

"This season may be over but this year is not over. In two years we flipped our records. We have done it with these young men. I am really proud of who we are. I am sad that I won't get a chance to coach Reggie anymore. We are going to have more good seasons. We are not finished."

Queens Junior Guard Preston Newlin

"We got after them right away, that's how we have come out all season. We are a defensive team and that was evident the whole game."

"Two years ago I came in as a freshman. We said that year that we would make it to the NCAA Tournament. We will be back next year."

"(Senior) Reggie (Hopkins) was a huge part of our team, but we will be back."