STATESBORO – Georgia Southern and Charleston Southern will square off in a charity exhibition men's basketball contest to raise financial support for hurricane relief efforts Tuesday, Oct. 30, at 7 p.m. in Hanner Fieldhouse.
Georgia Southern also will hold Hoops Fan Fest, featuring a post-game autograph session with the Eagle men's team, women's team and cheer team, as part of the event.
Admission is $5, all seating is general admission and all parking is free with all lots available on a first-come, first-served basis. Georgia Southern students are free of charge with a valid university ID and enter at the Student Entrance off of Herty Drive.
Georgia Southern basketball t-shirts will be on sale for $12, and all proceeds from the game will be donated to the American Red Cross to assist victims of Hurricane Florence and Hurricane Michael. Supported by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), the NCAA allows schools to apply for a waiver for a special additional exhibition contest to benefit relief efforts.
"We are very excited to be able to play a great opponent and make a charitable donation to all those affected by the hurricanes," said Georgia Southern coach
Mark Byington. "Charleston Southern coach Barclay Radebaugh is a good friend of mine, and I am so appreciative to him and Charleston Southern University for coming to Statesboro so that we can make a difference to those impacted including many of our current and former players. The importance of this exhibition game will not be determined by the final score but will be measured when we write the check to American Red Cross."
"We are really happy to lend a hand any way that we can, and look forward to joining with Georgia Southern to help affected communities. I think the world of Coach Byington and applaud him, his program and Georgia Southern for putting together this fundraiser," said Radebaugh.
Doors will open at 6 p.m., and the teams will play a 20-minute period, followed by a 12-minute halftime and then a 24-minute period. Georgia Southern will introduce its women's basketball team at halftime, and there will be Halloween candy and music throughout the evening. There also will be inflatables for kids in front of Hanner Fieldhouse, a Costume Contest for fans of all ages and a Pumpkin Carving Contest – bring your best carved pumpkin design to the game! Georgia Southern men's and women's basketball players and cheerleaders will sign autographs on the arena floor after the game.
Georgia Southern and Charleston Southern have not met on the hardwood since 1986, a 73-63 Eagle win in the Chattanooga Coca-Cola Classic. GS leads the series, which began in 1975, 8-3, and has a 4-1 record against the Bucs in Hanner Fieldhouse.
Georgia Southern reached 20 wins for the second time in four years in 2017-18, posting a 21-12 mark, and joined Louisiana and UTA as the only three Sun Belt schools to reach double-digit conference wins in each of the last four seasons. The Eagles return three starters, including three-time first-team All-Sun Belt selection
Tookie Brown, and five lettermen to the 2018-19 team.
Charleston Southern is coming off a 15-16 season that saw the Bucs go 9-9 in the Big South and advance to the conference quarterfinals, winning eight of its last 11 contests.
Georgia Southern annually offers one of the best values in the Sun Belt for men's basketball season tickets and this year is no different. Season tickets in the lower reserved sections (F-J) are $175 and sell out quickly while season tickets in the upper reserved sections (7-12) are $140. General admission season tickets are $100 and courtside seats are $450 each (minimum $1,200 Eagle Fund donation required to purchase courtside seats). Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at GSEagles.com/Tickets or by calling 1(800)GSU-WINS.
Fans who purchase a men's season tickets will have a women's season ticket included for no additional charge.
