Men's Basketball 3/8/2021 10:11:00 AM

Championship Monday: Panthers Face Appalachian State For SBC Title

PENSACOLA, Fla. - Looking to win a third-straight Sun Belt Conference Tournament title, No. 1-seed Georgia State will face No. 4-seed Appalachian State on Monday night at the Pensacola Bay Center with a spot in the NCAA Tournament up for grabs.

Georgia State (16-5) has won eight-straight games, tied for the fourth-longest winning streak in school history, and have now won eight-straight Sun Belt Conference tournament games played on neutral courts. Appalachian State (16-11) will be playing its fourth game in four days and will also be playing the Panthers for the fourth-time this year.

Broadcast Information
TV: ESPN2
Radio: WRAS-FM 88.5

Get Ready For The Game
•   Georgia State, the most successful team in the Sun Belt since returning to the league for the 2013-14 season with 98 league wins during that time, missed 9 games this year due to COVID-19 protocols.
•   Georgia State entered the Sun Belt Conference Tournament as a No. 1-seed for the sixth time. The Panthers have won three championships as a No. 1-seed and have combined for a 12-2 record in that spot.
•   GSU is 33-33 all-time in conference tournaments, but 10-4 since returning to the Sun Belt for the 2013-14 season.
•   Georgia State and Appalachian State will meet for the fourth time this season and the first time in the conference tournament. The Mountaineers won both games on their home court, with GSU winning its one game at home as well.
•   Georgia State is 10-6 all-time in conference championships in the state of Florida, winning a conference championship in 1991 in DeLand which led to the Panthers' first NCAA Tournament appearance.
•   Monday's game marks the ninth conference tournament championship game in program history for the Panthers (5-3).
•   Georgia State's 16-5 mark is the second-best 21-game start in program history, only behind the 18-3 start of 2000-01.
•   Senior Kane Williams broke Terrence Brandon's school record of 531 career free throw attempts, on Sunday (536).
•   In the win over Louisiana, the Panthers' 8 fouls were the fewest ever for the program in a conference tournament game. The 32 defense rebounds were one shy of a school record in a conference tournament game.
•   Georgia State has scored 100 or more points in three games this year, matching the school record for times going over the century mark in a season (1988-89 and 1991-92).
•   Georgia State has already secured an eighth-straight winning season for the first time in program history.
•   Georgia State has won 54-straight games dating back to 1999 when scoring 90 or more points.
•   GSU is currently ranked No. 16 in the NCAA averaging 81.2 points per game, while holding an assist/turnover ratio of 1.45 which ranks No. 16 in the NCAA. GSU is shooting 47.3 percent from the floor which ranks No. 40 in the nation.
•   Eliel Nsoseme is No. 4 in the NCAA averaging 4.22 offensive rebounds per contest and No. 18 averaging 10.0 rebounds per game. He grabbed 20 rebounds against Mercer and has recorded six double-doubles this season.
•   Corey Allen is shooting 43.1 percent from deep which ranks No. 14 in the NCAA. He is currently ranked among the top 40 active scorers in the nation with 1,604 career points.
•   Kane Williams is one of three active Sun Belt players with career totals of at least 1,000 points (1,209), 300 rebounds (365) and 300 assists (381). There are 61 active NCAA Division I players with those milestones.
•   Williams, an All-Sun Belt Preseason First Team member, enters with 1,209 career points, 3 shy of Kevin Morris for 12th and 5 shy of Zavian Smith for 11th on GSU's all-time list.
•   In GSU's win over Georgia Tech, the Panthers earned their first win ever over an ACC opponent and third over a Power 5 opponent in the last three years.
•   Also in the win over Tech, four Panthers (Allen, Nsoseme, Roberts, and Williams) each scored 20 or more points marking the first time in program history that feat has been accomplished in a game. GSU is the only team in the country to have four players score 20 or more points in a game this season.
•   Since returning to the Sun Belt in 2013-14, Georgia State has finished in the top two of the final regular season conference standings six times in eight seasons.
•   During that same time, GSU has won more games (169) than any other NCAA Division I team in Georgia.

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