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Georgia Southern University Athletics

Coye Simmons

Men's Basketball Marc Gignac

Men’s Basketball Preview: Eagles Take on Little Rock Saturday in Hanner

The Eagles are 5-0 at home this season.

Georgia Southern (11-5, 2-1) vs. Little Rock (4-12, 1-2)
Saturday, Jan. 6, 2018 - Hanner Fieldhouse (3,897) – 5 p.m.
Series: GS leads 16-15, L1
Last Meeting: 2/27/17, L 54-56 (away)
TV: WSAV-CW and ESPN3
Radio: GS Sports Network (pregame show starts a half hour before tipoff) - WMCD 107.3 FM (Statesboro), 630 AM WBMQ (Savannah), 1370 AM WLOP (Jesup)
Promotions: Basketball Jersey Day - kids 12 and under receive free admission when they wear their team jersey, Georgia Southern jersey, or favorite NBA jersey to either game (with purchase of an adult ticket only).
Live Audio | Live Video | Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Georgia Southern Little Rock
Roster Roster
Stats Stats
Schedule Schedule

Probable GS Starters:
#0 Montae Glenn
#2 Mike Hughes
#4 Tookie Brown
#10 Jake Allsmiller
#13 Quan Jackson

Setting the Scene
• Georgia Southern takes on Little Rock in Sun Belt action Saturday in Hanner Fieldhouse. The game tips off at 5 p.m. and will be broadcast live on WSAV-CW and ESPN3.
• Thursday's 80-49 win over Arkansas State was the Eagles' first home game in nearly a month. Georgia Southern had played the last six contests on the road and posted a 3-3 record. The last time the Eagles played six straight true road games was December of 1963, and the Eagles were 1-5 that year.
• The Eagles capped the non-conference portion of their schedule with four straight games on the road, a trip that encompassed 14 days, 11 cities and 7,500 miles. The Eagles played at George Mason (Dec. 12), CSU Bakersfield (Dec. 16), Kennesaw State (Dec. 19) and ETSU (Dec. 22) and went 2-2.
• Georgia Southern is 17-3 in Hanner Fieldhouse in its last 20 contests there and 45-15 under Mark Byington. The Eagles are 5-0 in Hanner this season and have won games against Division I competition by an average of 22 points.
• GS reached double-digit wins before the new year for the first time in school history. The Eagles' 10th victory of the season was an 86-80 decision at Troy Dec. 30.
• GS is 4-7 in its last 11 games against league competition after posting a 9-2 mark in its first 11 SBC contests last season.
• GS is 3-2 in its last five and coming off the 80-49 win over Arkansas State Thursday.
• The Eagles have opened conference play on the road in three of their four years in the league. GS plays five of its first seven league contests on the road this season but finishes the campaign with five of seven at home.
• As of Jan. 2, the Eagles are ranked 23rd in the CollegeInsider Mid-Major top-25. Gonzaga is ranked first, UTA is ranked 17th, Louisiana is eighth, Towson is 14th and Missouri State is ninth. App State and Bradley are receiving votes.
• Little Rock is 2-3 in its last five and coming off a 73-64 setback at Georgia State Thursday night.
• The Trojans are 0-8 on the road and have played games in eight different states.
• Little Rock was picked 10th in the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches Poll.
• It's the first of two meetings between the Trojans and Eagles this season. GS travels to Little Rock Feb. 1.

The Series
• This will be the 32nd meeting in the all-time series, which began in 1988. 
• Georgia Southern leads it 16-15 but has lost the last three.
• The Eagles won both games in 2014-15, and those contests were the first in the series since the 1990-91 season, when both schools were members of the TAAC.
• Two of the last four games have been decided by two points or less.
• The Eagles are 10-5 against the Trojans at home.

Team Storylines
• Eight of GS's 16 games have been decided by six points or less, and the Eagles are 4-4. Six have been one-possession games, and the Eagles are 3-3.
• Georgia Southern ranks eighth in the nation in offensive rebounds, and Montae Glenn ranks fifth in the country. The Eagles are first in the SBC in rebounding and offensive rebounds, and their rebound average of 41.4 is the highest since the 2001-02 season and a 6.7 rebound per game improvement from last year (34.7). 
• GS ranks 47th in the country and third in the SBC in free throws made. The Eagles are 13th in the nation and second in the SBC in free throws attempted.
• GS is averaging 78.4 points a game, the most since the 2004-05 season. The Eagles have scored over 80 points six times, over 90 three times and over 100 twice. GS ranks third in the SBC in scoring and second in scoring margin.
• Georgia Southern ranks third in the SBC in fewest turnovers, second in turnover margin and fifth in turnovers forced.
• Georgia Southern's top-3 seasons in 3-pointers made and attempted have all come during Mark Byington's tenure. GS is tied for fifth in the SBC in 3-pointers made and third in attempts this season and has made 10-plus triples in a game five times this season.
• Mark Byington is coaching in his 157th career game today and his 146th at Georgia Southern. His 51 wins in his first three seasons at Georgia Southern were the best of any coach in the modern era. He posted a 7-4 record at College of Charleston in 2012, filling in as the interim coach for Bobby Cremins.
• Under Mark Byington, Georgia Southern is 57-12 in games when leading at half and 67-6 when leading with five minutes to go.
• GS returned the Sun Belt's top two scorers in juniors Ike Smith (19.6 ppg) and Tookie Brown (17.1 ppg). The 2017 first-team All-Sun Belt selections are the fourth-highest scoring returning duo in the country. They were the third-highest freshman scoring duo in the country in 2015-16 (1-Rice's Marcus Evans and Marquez Letcher-Ellis, 2- FSU's Dwayne Bacon and Malik Beasley).
• GS joins UTA and Louisiana as the only three teams to reach double digit wins in conference play in each of the last three seasons and has the third most victories (36) against league competition during that time.
• Since joining the Sun Belt in 2014, 30 Georgia Southern games against Sun Belt schools have been decided by five points or less, and the Eagles are 19-11.
• The Eagles are 27-5 in Sun Belt games when leading at halftime. GS is 29-1 when leading with five minutes to go.
• GS has a combined record of 34-17 in Sun Belt games played in January and February since joining the league in 2014-15.
• GS went 9-4 in non-conference games. The last time the Eagles won nine non-conference games was in the 2005-06 season.
• The Eagles' 85-83 victory at Wake Forest was their first over an ACC opponent since topping Virginia Tech 83-78 on the road in 2012. Byington was an assistant coach for the Hokies at the time.
• Georgia Southern's 120 points against Bluefield State were the most in a game since 1974.
• GS started 5-0 for the first time since the 1991-92 season.
• The Eagles' 74-51 win at George Mason Dec. 12 was the Eagles' largest margin of victory on the road since an 86-61 win at Furman in 2006.
• All Sun Belt Conference matchups are doubleheaders with the women's teams with the exception of the Georgia State contest Feb. 9 on ESPN2 at 9 p.m.
• WSAV-CW in Savannah will televise the Eagles' Saturday home games for the remainder of the season. All Saturday home games tip off at 5 p.m.

Next Up
• The Eagles head back on the road for three straight Sun Belt match-ups. GS starts the swing at Coastal Carolina Jan. 11, with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m. in the HTC Center.
• Following the road trip, GS plays seven of its final 11 games at home.

Georgia Southern Athletics provides current information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, which is fully responsive across all mobile devices. Information on Eagle athletics can also be found through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics, twitter.com/GSAthletics and Instagram.com/GSAthletics. To purchase tickets to Georgia Southern athletics events, visit GSEagles.com/tickets.

In order to expedite entry and provide a safe environment for all patrons and participants, Georgia Southern Athletics has implemented a Clear Bag Policy for all ticketed sporting events, effective Aug. 1, 2017. Fans can find the complete policy as well as an FAQ section at GSEagles.com/ClearBag.


 
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Players Mentioned

Jake Allsmiller

#10 Jake Allsmiller

G
6' 5"
Senior
Tookie Brown

#4 Tookie Brown

G
5' 11"
Junior
Montae Glenn

#0 Montae Glenn

F
6' 8"
Junior
Mike Hughes

#2 Mike Hughes

G
6' 3"
Senior
Quan Jackson

#13 Quan Jackson

G
6' 4"
Redshirt Freshman
Ike Smith

#3 Ike Smith

G
6' 4"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Jake Allsmiller

#10 Jake Allsmiller

6' 5"
Senior
G
Tookie Brown

#4 Tookie Brown

5' 11"
Junior
G
Montae Glenn

#0 Montae Glenn

6' 8"
Junior
F
Mike Hughes

#2 Mike Hughes

6' 3"
Senior
G
Quan Jackson

#13 Quan Jackson

6' 4"
Redshirt Freshman
G
Ike Smith

#3 Ike Smith

6' 4"
Junior
G