Ike Smith and Tookie Brown were named Preseason All-Sun Belt.
Brown and Smith Named Preseason All-Sun Belt, Eagles Picked Second
10/25/2018 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NEW ORLEANS – Georgia Southern senior guards Tookie Brown and Ike Smith have been named All-Sun Belt, and the Eagles were picked in a tie for second in the conference's Preseason Men's Basketball Coaches Poll, announced today.
Brown was named preseason first-team All-Sun Belt, and Smith was named to the league's third team. GS is tied with Louisiana for second in the poll with 125 points, while ULM and Troy are tied for fourth with 89 points. Georgia State is picked to win the league, garnering all 12 first-place votes.
With 1,718 points, Brown is seventh among returning active career scoring leaders in the NCAA and 153 shy of becoming Georgia Southern's all-time leader in the Division I era. One of 17 players to earn first-team All-Sun Belt honors in three seasons, he is seeking to become the first to accomplish the feat all four years.
Brown averaged 18.9 points, 4.3 assists and 4.1 in rebounds while shooting .532 percent from the field and .471 percent from long distance last year. He ranked third in the Sun Belt in scoring, second in field goal percentage, fifth in assists, fifth in assist/turnover ratio (1.7) and second in steals (1.8). He was one of two players under 6-foot to be ranked in the top-100 nationally in field goal percentage last season.
Smith averaged 12.0 points and 4.3 rebounds, and he reached double figures in scoring in fifteen games, scored 20-plus points four times and led the Eagles in scoring in four contests. He enters the season ranked 17th on the school's career scoring list in the Division I era, and needs 65 rebounds to reach 500 for his career.
The Sun Belt poll follows a trend of preseason praise for the Eagles. Athlon, Lindy's, Street & Smith's and The Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook all have Brown on the preseason All-Sun Belt team and the Eagles picked in the top-3 of the conference.
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 notch double-digit conference wins in each of the last four seasons. The Eagles return three starters and five lettermen to the 2018-19 team and open the campaign with a home exhibition contest against Charleston Southern in Hanner Fieldhouse Oct. 30.
All-Sun Belt First Team
**Ronshad Shabazz, Appalachian State (Sr., G, Raleigh, N.C.)
*Tookie Brown, Georgia Southern (Sr., G, Madison, Ga.)
*D'Marcus Simonds, Georgia State (Jr., G, Gainesville, Ga.)
**Travis Munnings, ULM (Sr., F, Freeport, Bahamas)
**Jordon Varnado, Troy (Jr., F, Brownsville, Tenn.)
All-Sun Belt Second Team
Zac Cuthbertson, Coastal Carolina (Sr., F, New Bern, N.C.)
***Devin Mitchell, Georgia State (Sr., G, Suwanee, Ga.)
***JaKeenan Gant, Louisiana (Sr., F, Springfield, Ga.)
**Rodrick Sikes, South Alabama (Sr., G, Ocean Springs, Miss.)
***Nijal Pearson, Texas State (Jr., G, Beaumont, Texas)
All-Sun Belt Third Team
Ty Cockfield II, Arkansas State (Sr., G, Gainesville, Ga.)
Ike Smith, Georgia Southern (Sr., G, Gainesville, Fla.)
Marcus Stroman, Louisiana (Sr., G, Columbia, S.C.)
Michael Ertel, ULM (So., G, Indianapolis, Ind.)
Josh Ajayi, South Alabama (Jr., F, El Monte, Calif.)
Preseason Player of the Year
D'Marcus Simonds, Georgia State (Jr., G, Gainesville, Ga.)
*Denotes 2017-18 All-Sun Belt First Team
**Denotes 2017-18 All-Sun Belt Second Team
***Denotes 2017-18 All-Sun Belt Third Team
Preseason Poll (first-place votes in parentheses)
1. Georgia State (12) - 144
2. Georgia Southern - 125
Louisiana - 125
4. ULM - 89
Troy - 89
6. Appalachian State - 86
7. South Alabama - 80
8. Texas State - 67
9. Arkansas State - 42
10. Coastal Carolina - 40
11. UTA - 33
12. Little Rock - 16
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). Fans can purchase season tickets by visiting GSEagles.com/tix or 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.
Brown was named preseason first-team All-Sun Belt, and Smith was named to the league's third team. GS is tied with Louisiana for second in the poll with 125 points, while ULM and Troy are tied for fourth with 89 points. Georgia State is picked to win the league, garnering all 12 first-place votes.
With 1,718 points, Brown is seventh among returning active career scoring leaders in the NCAA and 153 shy of becoming Georgia Southern's all-time leader in the Division I era. One of 17 players to earn first-team All-Sun Belt honors in three seasons, he is seeking to become the first to accomplish the feat all four years.
Brown averaged 18.9 points, 4.3 assists and 4.1 in rebounds while shooting .532 percent from the field and .471 percent from long distance last year. He ranked third in the Sun Belt in scoring, second in field goal percentage, fifth in assists, fifth in assist/turnover ratio (1.7) and second in steals (1.8). He was one of two players under 6-foot to be ranked in the top-100 nationally in field goal percentage last season.
Smith averaged 12.0 points and 4.3 rebounds, and he reached double figures in scoring in fifteen games, scored 20-plus points four times and led the Eagles in scoring in four contests. He enters the season ranked 17th on the school's career scoring list in the Division I era, and needs 65 rebounds to reach 500 for his career.
The Sun Belt poll follows a trend of preseason praise for the Eagles. Athlon, Lindy's, Street & Smith's and The Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook all have Brown on the preseason All-Sun Belt team and the Eagles picked in the top-3 of the conference.
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 notch double-digit conference wins in each of the last four seasons. The Eagles return three starters and five lettermen to the 2018-19 team and open the campaign with a home exhibition contest against Charleston Southern in Hanner Fieldhouse Oct. 30.
All-Sun Belt First Team
**Ronshad Shabazz, Appalachian State (Sr., G, Raleigh, N.C.)
*Tookie Brown, Georgia Southern (Sr., G, Madison, Ga.)
*D'Marcus Simonds, Georgia State (Jr., G, Gainesville, Ga.)
**Travis Munnings, ULM (Sr., F, Freeport, Bahamas)
**Jordon Varnado, Troy (Jr., F, Brownsville, Tenn.)
All-Sun Belt Second Team
Zac Cuthbertson, Coastal Carolina (Sr., F, New Bern, N.C.)
***Devin Mitchell, Georgia State (Sr., G, Suwanee, Ga.)
***JaKeenan Gant, Louisiana (Sr., F, Springfield, Ga.)
**Rodrick Sikes, South Alabama (Sr., G, Ocean Springs, Miss.)
***Nijal Pearson, Texas State (Jr., G, Beaumont, Texas)
All-Sun Belt Third Team
Ty Cockfield II, Arkansas State (Sr., G, Gainesville, Ga.)
Ike Smith, Georgia Southern (Sr., G, Gainesville, Fla.)
Marcus Stroman, Louisiana (Sr., G, Columbia, S.C.)
Michael Ertel, ULM (So., G, Indianapolis, Ind.)
Josh Ajayi, South Alabama (Jr., F, El Monte, Calif.)
Preseason Player of the Year
D'Marcus Simonds, Georgia State (Jr., G, Gainesville, Ga.)
*Denotes 2017-18 All-Sun Belt First Team
**Denotes 2017-18 All-Sun Belt Second Team
***Denotes 2017-18 All-Sun Belt Third Team
Preseason Poll (first-place votes in parentheses)
1. Georgia State (12) - 144
2. Georgia Southern - 125
Louisiana - 125
4. ULM - 89
Troy - 89
6. Appalachian State - 86
7. South Alabama - 80
8. Texas State - 67
9. Arkansas State - 42
10. Coastal Carolina - 40
11. UTA - 33
12. Little Rock - 16
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). Fans can purchase season tickets by visiting GSEagles.com/tix or 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.
Players Mentioned
G
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