STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern women's basketball team makes the jaunt up I-75 to face Georgia State in Sun Belt Conference action on Saturday at Noon. The Eagles and the Panthers will take part in the first of two meetings this season in the Southern vs. State Rivalry Series, seeking a point in the two school's season-long all-sports competition.

More important than the point in the rivalry series, however, is the knowledge that one team on Saturday will come away with its first Sun Belt win of the season. The Eagles (3-14, 0-6 SBC) have dropped 11 straight contests coming into the showdown, while the Panthers (4-13, 0-6 SBC) have lost nine straight.

The two teams played two very close games in 2016-17, with Georgia State overcoming a 13-point second-half deficit to win 58-54 in Statesboro on Dec. 31, and the Panthers picking up a 63-62 win over the Eagles in Atlanta on March 4.

Each team lost top scorers from last season's squads, but Georgia Southern Head Coach Kip Drown knows that the game should still be tight despite the changes.

"Both were one-possession games," Coach Drown said of last season's pair of meetings. "They were games that could have gone either way. I would expect it to be very similar. These guys have played each other, through high school and club. I'm sure it will be a very high energy, competitive affair."

Add into the mix the Southern vs. State Rivalry Series factor, and that brings a little something extra to Saturday's meeting. In its third year, the Rivalry Series has seen Georgia State women's basketball contribute three points, winning the last three meetings, with Georgia Southern contributing one. 

"I think some of these kids text back each other, Snapchat each other," Coach Drown said. "Then you throw in the fan aspect of it. Last year, we sold all of our tickets plus we bought another 100 to cover all the kids we wanted to bring. You just have so many friends and family members up there, and this is the one time they get to see them play. There's a lot of emotion involved in the game, which makes it a lot of fun. Should be a great environment."

Georgia Southern leads the overall series between the two teams, 24-19. Kierra Henry (14.7 ppg) leads the Panthers offensively, while Nakol Franks (8.1 ppg) leads the Eagles. Alexis Brown has been a recent standout for the Eagles defensively, collecting 16 steals through the first six conference games, ranking third in the Sun Belt in steals per game. The Eagles will also have to avoid putting Georgia State on the free throw line as the Panthers are second in the Sun Belt in free throw percentage (74.2%). 

Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN3, while Colin Lacy mans the audio broadcast from the Georgia Southern Sports Network. Live stats are also available.