Eagles Face UNC Greensboro on Thursday Night
2/23/2011 10:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball
STATESBORO, Ga. - Georgia Southern Men's Basketball looks for its second consecutive win on Thursday night (February 24th) as it takes on UNC Greensboro at Hanner Fieldhouse. The Eagles (5-24, 1-15 SoCon) won their first league game of the year against The Citadel on Saturday night with a near-flawless second half. The Georgia Southern defense blocked eight shots and made seven steals while committing a season-low seven turnovers. Thursday's game is Student Appreciation Night and $500 in cash will be awarded in contests for Georgia Southern students.
"Voice of the Eagles" Chris Blair and the Georgia Southern Radio Network will have live coverage on 102.9 FM and GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/Eaglevision starting at 6:30 p.m. The same link will access subscription video coverage of the game.
Junior Ben Drayton III (St. Marys, Ga.) splashed 15 points against The Citadel and is averaging 16.0 points per game to pace the Eagles. He ranks 30th in all-time scoring at Georgia Southern with 1,100 career points, just 21 shy of moving into a tie for 29th place all-time. SoCon Freshman of the Year candidate Eric Ferguson (Statesboro, Ga.) leads all SoCon freshmen with 12.2 points per game. Freshman Jelani Hewitt (Oakland Park, Fla.) needs seven steals to move into first place on the freshman steals chart.
Thursday's game is the 18th all-time meeting between UNC Greensboro (5-22, 5-11 SoCon) and Georgia Southern. The Spartans hold a 10-7 lead in the series, taking the last three meetings. The Spartans' last trip to Statesboro was on Feb. 7, 2009 when UNCG downed the Eagles, 84-76. Earlier this season, Greensboro defeated the Eagles, 87-75 at the Greensboro Coliseum.
Charlton "C.Y." Young leads the Eagles in his second year in charge of his alma mater's program. Young led Georgia Southern to its last NCAA Tournament appearance and his 1,517-career point total ranks 11th on the all-time Georgia Southern scoring list.
Mike Dement leads the Spartans in the fifth season of his second tenure as UNCG head coach. He has a 119-160 record at Greensboro in 10 total seasons. Now in his 24th season as a head coach, Dement has a 324-347 career record.
The Spartans are led by Brandon Evans with 11.3 points per game. In the matchup earlier this season, he was held to just 10 points. Trevis Simpson has 11.1 points per game while Aaron Brackett leads UNCG with 5.7 rebounds per game.
All promotions on Thursday feature Georgia Southern students as participants with chances to win a total of $500 cash through the Subway Shootout, Verizon Wireless Musical Chairs, Sir Shop Dress and Dash and the lucky seat contest. GSU students can sign up for a free raffle to win $100. Other prizes include a pair of $50 gift certificates to the Sir Shop, a $100 gift certificate to the University Store and official GSU basketball apparel. Georgia Southern students can register for contests and drawings at the Athletics Marketing table on the front concourse of Hanner Fieldhouse. All of the promotions and prizes are open to all current GSU students.
The Eagles will close out the 2011 regular season at Hanner Fieldhouse against Elon on Saturday night (Feb. 26th). Senior day festivities begin prior to tipoff at 7:30 p.m. following the women's basketball game against Furman. The 2011 Southern Conference Tournament opens on Friday, March 4th in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Fans may follow Georgia Southern Men's Basketball by visiting GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/basketball or check in at twitter.com/GSAthletics or facebook.com/GSAthletics for short updates. Live stats and video are available at GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com.
