STATESBORO – Jake Allsmiller scored a season-high 19 points and canned six of Georgia Southern's 11 3-pointers as the Eagles posted a 97-61 men's basketball victory over Tennessee Wesleyan Saturday afternoon in Hanner Fieldhouse.

Allsmiller added a career-high five assists and was one of five Eagles with double figures in the scoring column. Tookie Brown tallied 15 points and 10 assists for his second career double-double, and Jared Hamilton scored a season-high 15. David-Lee Jones Jr. netted a career-high 12 points, and Quan Jackson finished with 10 points, three rebounds and three steals. 

Jalen Oliver scored 23 points to lead Tennessee Wesleyan (4-9), and Kenny Dean collected 15 points and three rebounds.

The story
Tennessee Wesleyan got off to a hot start and made six of its first eight from the floor before the Eagle defense dug in. Georgia Southern (6-2) held the Bulldogs to one of their next 11 from the field and forced four turnovers. 

The smothering defense sparked a 27-5 run for the home side with Allsmiller canning two triples and Jones Jr. netting five points, and GS led 52-32 at halftime. The margin grew to as many as 37 points on a pair of Hamilton free throws with 1:53 left in the contest.

The Eagles forced 19 turnovers in the game and scored 33 points off the miscues with 14 coming on fastbreaks.

Quotables
Head coach Mark Byington
On what he wanted to see from the team today
"I wanted to see growth and wanted the guys to continue to get better, and we did in certain areas. I think we were able to play some guys who haven't gotten to play as much. We didn't have Ike and Montae today, so some of those guys got some good experience. We have to continue to get better, and we know from here on out we have to play better than we did tonight."

On the upcoming exam week 
"We have a hard week coming up academically with exams. Right now, I'm really worried about our conditioning because the guys need to spend their time and energy on academics. When we can find some free time, we'll try to practice, but they are going to have a couple days off to hit the books."

On Savannah State
"Savannah State was the fastest-pace team last year in Division I basketball, and they are up there again this year. They shoot a ton of 3s, and they spread you out so it's an extremely challenging game coming out of exams. We do have to stay in shape, we have to be focused and we have to play better than we did today."

Next up
The Eagles welcome Savannah State to Hanner Fieldhouse for the first time since 2005 next Saturday. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. Promotions: Hanner for the Holidays - enjoy classic holiday fun with Christmas music, free candy canes and pictures with Santa Claus; Special big stocking giveaway for kids, Ugly Sweater Contest, and a fun Gift Giveaway halftime game for everyone else; Toys for Tots - Fans can donate a new toy to the Toys for Tots foundation.

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In order to expedite entry and provide a safe environment for all patrons and participants, Georgia Southern Athletics has implemented a Clear Bag Policy for all ticketed sporting events, effective Aug. 1, 2017. Fans can find the complete policy as well as an FAQ section at GSEagles.com/ClearBag.