DELAND, FLA. – Georgia Southern trailed Stetson by seven points at the break, but out-scored the Hatters 43-27 in the second half on 20 points in the final 20 minutes from Jelani Hewitt. GS shot 56% in the second period and went 6-of-12 from beyond the arc down the stretch to take the win. The Eagles improved to 6-2 on the year for the program's best start since 1992-93. GS closes non-conference play on Monday night against Truett-McConnell from 6 p.m. inside Hanner Fieldhouse on Education Day.

Hewitt finished the night with 30 points, reaching that threshold for the sixth time in his career and the third time this season. He made three-straight from downtown midway through the second half to spark a 16-5 run which took the Eagles from down six to up by seven points with less than two minutes to play. The senior from Miramar, Fla. also had seven rebounds, four steals, two assists and a season-low zero turnovers in 36 minutes of work.

Trent Wiedeman was one of three other Eagles to finish with 10 points. The senior transfer from College of Charleston reached the 1,000 career point threshold with an old-fashioned three-point play at the 16:17 mark of the first half. He gathered an offensive rebound for his 700th career rebound, made the lay-in and converted from the charity stripe to reach the magic number.

Angel Matias and Curtis Diamond joined Ferguson in double figures with 10 each. Matias was 3-of-6 from the field and 4-for-4 at the line in 30 minutes. Diamond came off the bench to score a dime with a pair of three-pointers and three rebounds in 24 minutes.

Senior Eric Ferguson had his best game of the season, scoring nine points including a pair of massive plays. He atoned for a duck against South Florida with a tomahawk jam on his first touch against the Hatters. He then added a crucial block on Kentwan Smith's dunk attempt with 4:21 remaining. The dunk would have tied the game, but the stuff helped the Eagles out-score the Hatters 7-2 over the next three minutes.

Stetson (3-9) shot the lights out in the first half, going 52% from the field and 7-for-13 from downtown as they reached their season average for made three-pointers in just the first 20 minutes. Grant Lozoya scored 20 points with 6-of-9 from downtown. Cameron Harvey, making his first start of the year, scored 15 with three from downtown.


After three-straight games away from Hanner Fieldhouse, Georgia Southern returns to Hanner Fieldhouse on Monday night at 6 p.m. against Truett-McConnell. It is Education Day with Georgia Southern faculty and staff as well as Bulloch County teachers, staff, and students able to purchase tickets for just $5. Fans can also pick up a discounted ticket by donating a new, unwrapped toy to "Toys for Tots."

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, twitter.com/GSAthletics, iOS app Georgia Southern Eagles and Android app Eagles GATA. For tickets to Georgia Southern athletics events, call 1-800-GSU-WINS or visit GSEagles.com.