Women's Basketball | 1/25/2017 11:05:00 AM

2016-17 GS WBB Quick Facts (PDF)
2016-17 GS WBB Media Guide (PDF)
@GSAthletics_WBB
@coachdrown
@GSAthletics

STATESBORO, Ga. – The Georgia Southern women's basketball team (7-11, 3-4 SBC) travels down to Alabama to compete against Sun Belt foes Troy and South Alabama this weekend. GS is coming off of a successful weekend at home, featuring conference wins over Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State. The Eagles will begin their weekend against Troy at 7 p.m. (CT) on Thursday night and then travel to Mobile to face off against South Alabama at 5 p.m. (CT) Saturday evening. Both games will be broadcasted live on ESPN3.

THURSDAY GAME SNAPSHOT
Georgia Southern vs. Troy
Thursday, Jan. 26   |  7:00 p.m. CST, 8:00 p.m. EST   |  Trojan Arena
Live Video (ESPN3)  |  Live Audio (GS Sports Network)   |  Live Stats 

SCOUTING THE TROJANS (Twitter - @TroyTrojansWBB)
Georgia Southern and Troy met on the hardwood earlier this month in Statesboro. The Eagles and Trojans kept it interesting until the final seconds inside of Hanner Fieldhouse, but Troy was eventually able to pull away with an 89-86 win over the Eagles. The two teams have met in women's basketball history eleven total times, with Troy owning a 9-2 record over the Eagles.

Head Coach Chanda Rigby is in her fifth season at the helm of the Trojans program after spending the previous seven seasons as the head coach at Pensacola State. In her four seasons coaching the Trojans, Rigby has coached six first or second team All-Sun Belt selections, led the Sun Belt in scoring offense each year, and the most recent three teams have all finished in the NCAA's top 20 in scoring offense. Last season, the Trojans finished 20-13, won the Sun Belt Conference Tournament and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for just the second time in program history.

Troy has started their campaign 13-5 overall and 6-1 in conference play, with their only Sun Belt loss being to Little Rock, who sits in first in the Sun Belt. Troy and UT-Arlington are each tied for second in the conference. The Trojans are averaging 85.4 points per game while holding their opponents to 72.7 points. As a team, Troy enters the weekend shooting 41.2% (561-1361) from the field and averaging eight three-pointers per game. The Trojans have forced 19.7 turnovers per game, but have turned the ball over 21.9 times per game themselves.

Caitlyn Ramirez leads the Trojans in scoring with 11.4 points per game and a total of 205 points on the year. Ramirez has shot 44.5% (73-164) from the field, and also leads the Trojans in rebounding with 167 total. Right behind her is senior guard Jayla Chills, who averages 11 points per game with a total of 198 points on the year. Chills has started every game for the Trojans and averages 24 minutes per game. From three-point range, the Trojans are led by Amanda Mendoza, who holds a 38.3% (31-81) shooting average with an average of 1.7 three-pointers a game.

2016-17 Troy Roster
2016-17 Troy Schedule
2016-17 Troy Statistics

SATURDAY GAME SNAPSHOT
Georgia Southern vs. South Alabama
Saturday, Jan. 28   |  5:00 p.m. CST, 6:00 p.m. EST   |   Mitchell Center
Live Video (ESPN3)  |  Live Audio (GS Sports Network)   |  Live Stats 

SCOUTING THE JAGUARS (Twitter - @SouthALWBB)
The Eagles and Jaguars met earlier this month inside of Hanner Fieldhouse. Despite the Eagles holding the Jags to only 33 percent shooting from the field, South Alabama used 19 offensive rebounds to score 16 second-chance points and escape Statesboro with a 55-46 win. Prior to Georgia Southern entering the Sun Belt two years ago, the two teams hadn't met on the court in seven years. During both the 2015 and 2016 season the two teams split decisions in Sun Belt play.

Head Coach Terry Fowler is in his 18th season as a head coach after previously spending seven years at the helm of North Alabama, where he guided the Lions to the NCAA tournament in both 2011 and 2013. Fowler, in the midst of his fourth season as head coach of the Jags, holds a 241-247 career record and 35-70 record at South Alabama. During the 2014-15 season, South Alabama finished with a 5-24 overall record. Fowler and the Jaguars improved to 15-15 last season and led the conference in blocks, field-goal defense and defensive rebounding.

South Alabama will play at home on Thursday night against Georgia State on a four-game losing skid. The Jaguars enter Thursdays game with a 7-11 overall record and 2-5 in Sun Belt play, sitting in the bottom three of the conference. The last time the Jags won was Jan. 7 against Georgia State, and have since then have lost to Sun Belt opponents UT Arlington, Texas State, Arkansas State and Little Rock. South Alabama averages only 52.1 points per game while giving up 59.7 points to their opponents. As a team, the Jags enter the weekend shooting 33.2% (332-999) from the field and average 4.7 three-pointers per game.

South Alabama has only one Jag averaging double digit points with Chyna Ellis who averages 11.1 points per game.  Along with leading the Jaguars in scoring, Ellis is also the team's top rebounder with 7.1 rebounds per contest and is responsible for 20% of the team's scoring and 20% of the team's rebounds per game.  Behind her, Colby Davis averages 9.1 points per game and has started and played every game for the Jaguars. South Alabama enters the weekend with the lowest scoring offense in the Sun Belt with 52.1 points per game, while also holding opponents to the third lowest output in the conference at 60.3 points per game. 

2016-17 South Alabama Roster
2016-17 South Alabama Schedule
2016-17 South Alabama Statistics

LAST TIME OUT (W, 53-50 vs Appalachian State)
The Georgia Southern women's basketball team (7-11, 3-4 SBC) trailed by two with only 20 seconds remaining on the clock when Nakol Franks nailed a three-pointer to give Georgia Southern the lead over Appalachian State (8-10, 3-4 SBC). The Eagles and Mountaineers tangled until the final seconds inside Hanner Fieldhouse, but the timely shooting by GS gave them the advantage, improving to 3-4 in Sun Belt play.

Angel McGowan recorded 19 points, four rebounds and two steals, and Georgia Southern shot 36.5% (19-52) from the field in Sun Belt women's basketball action Saturday afternoon. Patrice Butler collected 16 points and six rebounds for Georgia Southern, and the standout freshman Nakol Franks chipped in 10 points and two assists. 

Madi Story posted 15 points and 12 rebounds to lead Appalachian State, and Amber Driver scored nine. Bria Carter added seven points and eight rebounds, and Bailey Plummer finished with four points and nine rebounds.


NEXT UP
Georgia Southern will return home next weekend to play Louisiana and UL Monroe inside Hanner Fieldhouse. The Eagles will face off against the Ragin' Cajuns at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb 2 and the Warhawks at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb 4.


The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are scheduled for a week of March Madness in the Big Easy.  New Orleans will once again be home to the two championships that will take place at Lakefront Arena from March 7-12 and ticket books can now be purchased from your our ticket office.  For more information, visit the Sun Belt Conference's championship central websites - Men's Championship – Women's Championship – and be sure to follow the @FunBelt on social media - @SunBelt.

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. Fans can purchase tickets to Georgia Southern Athletics events by visiting GSEagles.com/Tickets.