WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Ike Smith scored his 1,000th career point on Georgia Southern's first basket of the game, but his final five of the night will wind up being the most memorable as the Eagles topped Wake Forest 85-83 Friday night in Lawrence Joel Coliseum. 

It was the season opener for both schools.

Smith's 3-pointer from the corner tied the game 83-83 with 59.6 seconds left, and Montae Glenn blocked a shot at the other end to give the Eagles the ball back. Coach Mark Byington elected not to call a timeout, and Tookie Brown found Mike Hughes for a 3-point try with nine ticks left. Hughes' shot rimmed out, but Smith was there for the rebound and was fouled on the putback attempt. The junior calmly sank them both for an 85-83 lead with 3.6 seconds to go.

After a Wake Forest timeout, the Demon Deacons tried to inbound to 7-footer Doral Moore so he could hit a guard cutting for the hoop with a head of steam, but the ball bounced off Moore's hands. Brown collected the loose ball and fired it into the air as time expired.

Smith finished with 18 points, and Brown scored 22. Mike Hughes, the Winston-Salem native, scored 18 and hit a 3-pointer from the wing that gave the Eagles their first lead of the game with 2:10 to play. 

Montae Glenn matched his career high with 14 points, including 12 in the second half, and added a career-high 13 rebounds with eight coming on the offensive end. Jared Hamilton was the fifth Eagle in double figures with 10 points to go along with three boards and two assists, and Coye Simmons, another Winston-Salem native, chipped in four rebounds.

Keyshawn Woods led Wake Forest with 25 points to go along with six rebounds, and Chaundee Brown tallied 21 points and nine assists in his collegiate debut. Bryan Crawford finished with 19 points, and Terrence Thompson tallied nine points and 11 rebounds.

The story
The last two minutes of the game saw three lead changes and a tie, which started with Hughes' 3-pointer that gave GS an 80-79 lead. Wood answered with a jumper, and Bryant stole the ball from Tookie Brown and hit teammate Chaundee Brown for a fastbreak layup and an 83-80 cushion with 1:15 to go. 

The Eagles came right back down and found an open Smith in the corner for the tying triple. The momentum swing was just some of the adversity Georgia Southern had to overcome in the second half. With under five minutes to go, the Eagles had been whistled for 14 fouls compared to three for Wake Forest, and the Demon Deacons reached the bonus with 11:59 left in the game. 

The Eagles got off to a nervy start, committing four turnovers in the first 2:30 of the contest, and found themselves trailing 14-4 early on. Brown scored 10 points in a row, and his layup gave Wake Forest a 27-13 cushion with 9:54 left in the first. 

Smith hit a jumper, Jake Allsmiller nailed a 3-pointer and Hughes scored five straight points to spark a 16-4 Eagle run over the next 3:30, and Georgia Southern trailed 46-40 at halftime. GS kept Wake in its sights in the second half, never allowing the home side more than a six-point lead.

Smith's 1,000th point came on a pull-up jumper 1:40 into the contest.

Quotables
Head coach Mark Byington
Overall
"It's a very good win, but what I'm really proud of is that we faced all kinds of adversity. We had to fight for every single inch of this, and that's what I'm proud of the guys for the most. We have some leadership now, and I don't have to tell guys, 'Hey, we're going to win this game.' Tookie Brown said it in every single huddle, even when we were struggling, he said, 'Guys, we're gonna come back and win this game.' So, it's a very good win and I'm proud of the guys, but it's the very first game of the year. We have to continue to get better, and we have maybe the best team on our schedule coming to Hanner Fieldhouse on Monday."

On the slow start
"In the first half, I kept asking the guys, 'Can we just play like us?' We were just beating ourselves up and not doing the things I knew we are capable of doing. I knew we could get back in the game, and the second-half defense at the beginning was very good. It was a slugfest. They're making shots, and we're making shots going back and forth. I'm happy for the guys because it shows that their hard work in the offseason has paid off and now we hope we keep getting better."

On the last two minutes
"It was going to be a possession game. We worked on situations in shootaround today, because we knew it was going to come down to a situation. I didn't know which one, but it comes down to an offensive rebound, free throws and getting a stop at the end of the game. You have older guys and tough guys who love playing in that, and I'm really proud they stepped up."

On the Eagles' last possession
"The guys know that sometimes chaos is a good thing and sometimes the defense isn't set up. Mike's shot was a good shot, and Ike had two wide open 3s before the one he made. We were taking good shots and making good plays, and I have a lot of trust in the guys and I'm going to let them make plays and do their thing."

Senior guard Mike Hughes 
On the game
"It's a good feeling, but this can't be the highlight of our season. I'm just happy our guys came here and played hard, played together and played to win."

On the 3-pointer that gave the Eagles their first lead
"Actually, I had no idea what the score was. I just recognized that I was open, and I know my teammates have the confidence in me to take shots. They told me to keep shooting even though I was kind of off early so I give them credit for having so much belief in me."

Next up
Georgia Southern plays its home opener against Cal State Bakersfield, a 2017 NIT Final Four participant, Monday night in Hanner Fieldhouse. The game is slated to tip off at 7:30 p.m. and is the nightcap of a doubleheader with the GS women's team, which takes on Coastal Georgia at 5 p.m. 

Students get free pizza while supplies last for the women's game and free t-shirts for the men's game while supplies last. GS is also giving away 1,000 free LED wristbands to fans at both contests.

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