The Georgia Southern men's basketball program reached 20 wins for the second time in four years and just the ninth time in the Division I era, and the Eagles reached 21 victories for the third time in the past 26 campaigns. It was just one of a number of highlights of the 2017-18 campaign.

The seniors
This year's senior class recorded 75 wins in their four years, the most since the 1993 class recorded 75. Mike Hughes became the first player in Georgia Southern men's basketball history to tally over 1,200 career points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists and 100 steals and set a new school record for career starts with 123.

Jake Allsmiller finished his career second in 3-pointers at Georgia Southern and ranks sixth on the Sun Belt's all-time list. His 128 games played ranks second at GS, and Coye Simmons 113 games ranks 18th.

Postseason Honors
Georgia Southern guard Tookie Brown was named first-team All-Sun Belt and NABC first-team All-District for the third consecutive season.

The junior is the 17th player in the 42-year history of the Sun Belt to earn first-team all-conference accolades in three seasons and becomes the first Eagle to accomplish the feat in Georgia Southern history. No player in Sun Belt history has earned the honor four times.

Brown currently ranks third in the Sun Belt in scoring (18.9 ppg), fifth in assists (4.3 apg), second in steals (1.8 spg), second in field goal percentage (.532) and leads the league in free throws attempted (235) and made (177). He is one of only two players listed under 6-feet tall ranked in the top-100 nationally in field goal percentage and also ranks 17th in the NCAA in free throw attempts, 23rd in made free throws and 70th in steals per game.

Brown was named SBC Player of the Week Dec. 12 and March 4, and earned a spot on the Gulf Coast Showcase all-tournament team after leading the Eagles to the championship game. The first Eagle to record 500 or more points in three straight seasons, Brown ranks sixth in the modern era in career scoring at Georgia Southern with 1,718 points and will enter the 2018-19 campaign ranked seventh among the NCAA's active career scoring leaders if all the juniors on the current list return for their senior seasons. He will begin his senior campaign tied for 25th on the Sun Belt all-time scoring list.

Talking 1 K
Ike Smith scored the first basket of the season at Wake Forest, which was also his 1,000th career point as he became one of three active 1,000-point scorers for the Eagles. Smith now has 1,333 points, which ranks 17th in the modern era.

Sun Belt Success 
Georgia Southern has finished in the top-3 in three of their four seasons in the league and has 46 conference victories, the fourth most since 2014. The Eagles joined Louisiana and UTA as the only three Sun Belt schools to reach double-digit conference wins in each of the last four seasons.

High-Flying Eagles
GS averaged 75.9 points a game and has averaged over 75 points in each of the last three seasons. The Eagles scored over 80 points 12 times, over 90 four times and over 100 twice. GS ranks fourth in the SBC in scoring and third in scoring margin.

Georgia Southern's top-5 seasons in 3-pointers made and attempted have all come during Head Coach Mark Byington's tenure.

Point Received
Rebounding was a point of emphasis heading into the season and the Eagles broke the school single-season record for rebounds with 1,247. The Eagles rank 39th in the nation in offensive rebounds and are fifth in the SBC in rebounding and third in offensive rebounds. Their rebound average of 37.8 was a 3.1 rebound per game improvement from last year (34.7). Montae Glenn ranks second in the country in offensive rebounds.

Taking Care of the Rock
Georgia Southern ranks second in the SBC in fewest turnovers, first in turnover margin and second in turnovers forced. The Eagles posted 10 turnovers or less in 12 contests.

Protecting Hanner
Georgia Southern posted double-digit wins in Hanner Fieldhouse for the fourth straight season, finishing with a 10-3 record. Georgia Southern is 22-6 in Hanner Fieldhouse in its last 28 contests there, 50-18 in five years under Mark Byington and 29-9 all-time in Sun Belt games.

Boarding the Mothership
The Eagles had 21 live broadcasts on television and streaming platforms in the regular season. In addition to the Eagles' game against Georgia State on ESPN2, fifteen games aired on ESPN3 as part of the Sun Belt package and four aired locally on WSAV-CW in Savannah. Non-conference games at Wake Forest (ACC Extra), Bradley (ESPN3), CSU Bakersfield (ESPN3), Kennesaw State (ESPN3) and ETSU (ESPN3) were also carried.

The Long and Winding Road
GS went 9-4 in non-conference games, and the last time the Eagles won nine non-conference games was in the 2005-06 season. Four non-conference opponents – Bradley, ETSU, Missouri State and Towson – are in the top-150 in the RPI.

The Eagles finished the regular season 8-7 in true road games, and Georgia Southern went 11-9 away from home. The last time GS won eight true road games was in 2014-15, and the 11 victories was the most non-home wins since the 1987-88 campaign. Georgia Southern played six straight true road games for the first time since 1963.

Head Coach Mark Byington
Byington's 90 wins in his first five seasons at Georgia Southern are the best of any coach in the modern era, and in three of his five seasons, the Eagles have recorded the three highest RPIs in the last 28 years. 

All of his seniors have graduated, and Byington signed a contract extension in February that will keep him at GS through 2022.

More Notes
• Eighteen of GS's 33 games were decided by six points or less, and the Eagles were 10-8. Eleven were one-possession games, and the Eagles went 5-6. GS was 3-5 in games decided by two points or less.
• The Eagles played without leading scorers and first-team Preseason All-Sun Belt selections Ike Smith or Tookie Brown for six games, and GS played without a starter eight times.
• 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 the season 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.

Coming to Hanner Next Season
ETSU, Bradley and George Mason will all return non-conference games and play in Hanner Fieldhouse in 2018-19.

A Lot Coming Back
Despite losing four seniors, GS will return 71 percent of its scoring and 65 percent of its rebounding to the 2018-19 team. Three starters and seven lettermen are set to return.

Waiting in the Wings
Seven-foot-1 center Tyshaun Crawford redshirted the season and will have four years of eligibility remaining, and 6-foot-8 junior transfer Simeon Carter sat out his required transfer year and will have two years of eligibility. 

The Eagles also signed Trey Dawkins, Will Dillard, Elijah McCadden, Calvin Wishart and David Viti in November during the early signing period. 

Dillard was selected to play in the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association All-Star Game, McCadden was named all-state and led his team to an appearance in the 1A state championship game and Wishart is a finalist for Mr. Basketball in the state of Minnesota.

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