STATESBORO - Georgia Southern men's basketball opens the home slate of its 2025-26 season on Saturday afternoon, hosting UNC Asheville at the Jack and Ruth Ann Convocation Center in Statesboro. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

THE OPENING TIP

• Georgia Southern returns to the court on Saturday for its first home contest of the new year. After falling to East Carolina in the season opener, the Eagles look to rebound at home in a place where they were nearly unbeatable last season. When the Jack and Ruth Ann Convocation Center opened last season, Georgia Southern was 8-3 in the new arena, while posting an 11-3 record in Statesboro.
• Saturday afternoon marks the Eagles' annual Toilet Paper Toss, a tradition that began in the late 1980s. The tradition first appeared during the 1988 game when Georgia Southern defeated Arkansas-Little Rock, 57-48, and was reinstated on November 14, 2022. Following the first points, the Eagles score, fans will throw rolls of toilet paper onto the court. On Saturday against UNC Asheville, it will mark the first time the tradition takes place inside "The Hill". 
• Redshirt-senior Alden Applewhite put on a show in Tuesday's season opener for the Eagles, marking his first start in a Georgia Southern uniform. Applewhite led all scorers for the Eagles on Tuesday, collecting 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting and knocking down two three-pointers to go along with it. He grabbed five rebounds, assisted on one basket, and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe. His 21-point outburst was the most scored by an Eagle in his debut since Eric Ferguson had 26 at Notre Dame in 2010. 
• The Eagles and Bulldogs will meet for the first time in program history on Saturday.
• Following the first game of the 2025-26 season, Georgia Southern sits as the best three-point defending team in the Sun Belt Conference, holding East Carolina to 4-of-20 (.200) shooting from behind the arc. That mark is tied for 45th in the country.
• Georgia Southern's defense in its opening contest of the new year was swarming in Greenville, North Carolina, forcing the Pirates into 13 turnovers and collecting 11 steals in the process. The 11 steals secured by the Eagles on opening night are the most in the Sun Belt, ahead of Appalachian State, which swipes 9.50 per game in two contests.