STATESBORO, Ga. – Georgia Southern Men's Basketball opens the 2014-15 season on Friday night with a trip to face Illinois. The game, Georgia Southern's fourth such visit to Champaign, starts at 9 p.m. (ET) and can be seen live on ESPN3 with the radio call available on the Georgia Southern Sports Network from Learfield Sports. The Eagles enter their second season under Head Coach Mark Byington and took a 22-point win over North Greenville last Friday.

TV: ESPN3 / WatchESPN.com
Play-by-Play – Zack Zaidman
Analyst – Homer Drew
RADIO: Georgia Southern Sports Network from Learfield Sports
Play-by-Play – Brian Jennings
Analyst – AJ Henderson
Metter/Swainsboro – 103.7 WMBZ-FM
Statesboro – 106.5 WZBX-FM
Savannah/Hilton Head/Brunswick – 102.1 WZAT-FM
Jessup – 1370 WLOP-AM
Worldwide – GSEagles.com
LIVE STATS: GSEagles.com
TWITTER UPDATES: @GSAthletics_MBB 

SERIES HISTORY: Fourth Meeting (GS Trails 0-3)
LAST MEETING: 11/17/2006 – Lost 85-50 – at Illinois

GEORGIA SOUTHERN EAGLES (0-0)
Schedule/Results | Roster | 2013-14 Stats | Media Guide | Game Notes

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS FIGHTING ILLINI (0-0)
Schedule/Results | Roster | 2013-14 Stats | Media Guide | Game Notes

EAGLES MAKE FOURTH TRIP TO FACE ILLINOIS
For the first time since 2006, Georgia Southern visits Illinois for a meeting on the hardwood. Illinois is 3-0 in the all-time series with a 85-50 win in the last meeting on November 17th, 2006 inside the State Farm Center (formerly Assembly Hall).

BUSSEY EARNS SPOT IN NBADL
After being signed and waived on the same day by the Utah Jazz, former Eagle Tre Bussey has earned a spot on the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Developmental League. The Stampede open the 2014-15 season on Friday night.

SEASON TICKETS ON SALE NOW
Season tickets for the 2014-15 season are available now by contacting the Georgia Southern Athletics Ticket Office. With 13 doubleheaders on the schedule, fans can get the same seat for men's and women's games for just $120. For more information, contact the Georgia Southern Athletics Ticket Office at 1-800-GSU-WINS.

PUTTING IN THE MILES
Georgia Southern will travel more than 12,000 miles this season for the program's first season in the Sun Belt Conference. The season total of 12, 283 miles is just 168 miles fewer than half the circumference of the Earth. Last year the Eagles traveled 9,216 miles.

THE COACH
Head Coach Mark Byington enters the 2014-15 season with a 22-23 career record as he opens his second season with the Eagles.

THE WEATHER
Central Illinois is going through a "Big Chill" this week with a high temperature of 33 degrees on tap for Friday with an overnight low of 21 degrees under clear skies. Conditions in Statesboro will be pleasant with a high temperature of 58 degrees and a low of 32.

UP NEXT
The Eagles are back at home on Tuesday night to face Trinity College. The game is the second part of a doubleheader at Hanner Fieldhouse which begins at 5 p.m. when the Women's Basketball team faces Jacksonville. The Men's game follows at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the Georgia Southern Athletics Ticket Office at 1-800-GSU-WINS or online at GSEagles.com/tickets.

Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics and twitter.com/GSAthletics. To purchase tickets call 1-800-GSU-WINS.