STATESBORO, Ga. – Mike Hughes led five Eagles in double figures with 18 points, and Georgia Southern drilled nine 3-pointers in the first half en route to a 90-59 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball victory over Arkansas State Thursday night in Hanner Fieldhouse.

Hughes made three 3-pointers in the game, Jake Allsmiller knocked down five, and Ike Smith and Tookie Brown each drained two for Georgia Southern (12-13, 8-7). Allsmiller finished with 17 points, Brown scored 15 and Smith tallied 10 points, seven rebounds and three steals. 

Montae Glenn collected 10 points and eight rebounds, and Devonte Boykins chipped in eight points and six boards off the bench.

Devin Carter scored a game-high 22 points for Arkansas State (11-15, 7-8), while Anthony Livingston contributed 11 points and 12 rebounds. Frederic Dure tallied 10 points and six rebounds.

Georgia Southern held Arkansas State to 30 percent shooting for the game, including 8 of 32 in the first half. The Eagles scored 30 second-chance points off of 21 offensive rebounds and netted 20 points off 12 Red Wolves' turnovers.

The story
Leading 17-13 midway through the first half, Georgia Southern canned four triples in a 21-4 run that gave the Eagles a 38-17 advantage. Brown scored six points during the stretch, Smith netted six and Hughes chipped in five. After Carter dropped in a 3-pointer to make the score 41-22, the Eagles scored eight points in the final minute of the frame, with Hughes getting the last five, to open a 49-22 cushion at the break. Georgia Southern hit 9 of 20 from long distance in the period and held Arkansas State to 25 percent from the field.

The Eagles pushed the lead to 39 points on a Hughes 3-pointer four minutes into the second half, and it never fell below 30 points from there. The margin grew to 41 points on a jumper by Montae Glenn midway through the period.

Quotables
Allsmiller
"All the guards and bigs that we have shoot the ball very well. We spread the floor, we play fast and we want to get up as many shots as possible. It's a style we all love to play. If we get hot, we're one of the best shooting teams in the conference. We have a bunch of sharp-shooters on this team."
  
Head coach Mark Byington
"The guys did a great job of executing the game plan and the scouting report. They had great focus and attention to detail tonight."

"I was anxious to see how the first four minutes of the second half went because these guys have never been in this situation. Give them credit – the first four minutes of the second half, there were a couple defensive lapses but they turned it on and extended the lead, which was big to set the tone."

"The guys did a great job of staying focused from the opening tip all the way through. They didn't look at the scoreboard; they played each possession, which is something I've been preaching. Mike Hughes is turning into a very good leader. Jake Allsmiller got hot early and got us going, and his first three 3s were big for momentum and confidence, and we guarded. If we play defense, we got a chance to be pretty good."

Next Up
The Eagles continue their four-game homestand by playing host to first-place Little Rock Saturday in Hanner Fieldhouse. Promotions running Saturday: Student section surprise – Students need to #PackHanner for special giveaways and games; Cheerleader Senior Day - recognizing cheer team seniors during halftime of the men's game.

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, visit GSEagles.com/tickets.