STATESBORO - The Georgia Southern women's basketball team begins a three-game Sun Belt Conference homestand on Thursday, hosting UL Monroe with an eye on moving up the league standings. The Eagles will then host Louisiana on Saturday for their annual Pack the House Pink game at Hanner to help the fight against Breast Cancer.

The Eagles (4-18, 1-10 SBC) take on UL Monroe (4-17, 1-9 SBC) at 5 p.m. on Thursday at Hanner Fieldhouse. The two teams, along with Georgia State, are all within a half game of each other in the league standings and Georgia Southern wants to make it two in a row at Hanner after picking up its first win of the league season on Jan. 27 with its 73-68 victory over UT Arlington. The Eagles have gotten a boost lately from senior Trellanie English-Lurry, who had a career-high 17 points in Saturday's loss at Arkansas State. English-Lurry now ranks sixth in the Sun Belt in three-point field goal percentage at 89.1, while sophomore Nakol Franks has retaken the league lead in free throw shooting at 91.7 percent (44-of-48).

Gabriella Cortez leads UL Monroe offensively, averaging 16.7 points per game, which is tied for third in the Sun Belt. She has drained 51 three-pointers and is shooting 39.5 percent from beyond the arc, both numbers ranking in the top five in the league. Arsula Clark is averaging 9.9 points per game as a complement to Cortez. As a team, the Warhawks commit 20.1 turnovers per game, ranking 12th in the league.

UL Monroe leads the overall series between the two teams, 4-2, but Georgia Southern won both matchups during the 2016-17 season, taking a 65-44 win in Monroe on Jan. 12, and a 76-65 win in Statesboro on Feb. 4. Thursday's game will be the only regular season meeting between the two teams in 2017-18.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN3, with Colin Lacy bringing you the audio call on the Georgia Southern Sports Network. Live stats are also available.

Saturday, the Eagles host Louisiana (11-11, 6-4 SBC) at 2 p.m. at Hanner for the 12th Annual Pack The House Pink game. The Eagles will have a check presentation at halftime to donate collected funds to the Statesboro Bulloch County Breast Cancer Foundation, while also honoring breast cancer survivors at the break and honoring those who have lost their battle with a pre-game moment of silence. Pack the House in Pink began in February of 2006 in honor of the late Kathy Brunson, who a member of the Statesboro Service League and a local Phi Mu alumnus who died of breast cancer in November of 2005.

Louisiana is 3-2 at home and 3-2 on the road in league play so far this year, but Louisiana has dropped its last two at home (vs. South Alabama, vs. Troy) while winning its last two road games (at Texas State, at UL Monroe).

The Ragin' Cajuns have four players averaging 8.7 points or better per game, led by Nekia Jones' 10.1 points per game. Jones has upped her shooting in Sun Belt play, ranking third in the league in three-point shooting in league-only games at 43.1 percent. 

Louisiana leads the overall series between the two teams, 5-1, but Georgia Southern won the last matchup, taking a 63-60 win over the Ragin' Cajuns on Feb. 2, 2017. Saturday will be the only meeting between the two teams in the 2017-18 regular season.

The game will be broadcast on True Blue TV, with Colin Lacy bringing you the audio call on the Georgia Southern Sports Network. Live stats are also available.