Round Two of #StateNotSouthern Saturday in Statesboro

Deasia Merrill celebrates game-winning shot vs. Georgia Southern two weeks ago.

After defeating Georgia Southern on a last-second shot two weeks ago in Atlanta, Georgia State (8-10, 2-4 Sun Belt) makes the return trip to Statesboro to face the Eagles (12-7, 3-4 Sun Belt) Saturday at 1 p.m. at Hanner Fieldhouse. The game will air on ESPN+.

GEORGIA STATE at GEORGIA SOUTHERN
Feb. 5 • 1 p.m. • Hanner Fieldhouse • Statesboro, Ga.

COVERAGE: ESPN+

THE TIPOFF

• Georgia State has won two in row and nine of the last 12 games against its in-state rival.

• Two Saturdays ago in Atlanta, Georgia State led Georgia Southern the entire way until a 3-pointer by the Eagles tied the game at 56-all with 26 seconds left. With the clock running down, Georgia State point guard Tehya Lyons found Kamryn Dziak in the corner. Dziak missed the 3-pointer, but Deasia Merrill ripped the rebound away from Georgia Southern's Mya Burns, and her short jumper from the baseline was good at the buzzer, giving the Panthers the 58-56 victory.

• The Panthers have played three straight close games, defeating Georgia Southern on a last-second shot and then South Alabama in overtime before falling 60-56 to Troy.

• In last week's 72-66 overtime win against South Alabama, Georgia State led most of the game before the Jaguars forced overtime with a 3-pointer with just one second left in regulation. But the Panthers quickly regained control in the extra period as Hannah Sadler (8 points), Alex Gitchenko (5 points) and Tehya Lyons (4 points) combined to outscore the Jags 17-11.

• After playing its last five games at home, Georgia State is playing its first road game since Jan. 8. The Panthers will return home next weekend for games against Coastal Carolina (Feb. 10) and Appalachian State (Feb. 12), giving them seven out of eight games at the GSU Sports Arena.

• Ashley Foster leads GSU in scoring (11.6 ppg) and rebounding (4.3 rpg), and she is second on the team in assists (2.0 pg) and steals (1.7 pg). She has reached double figure scoring 10 times this season, including a career-high 19 points at Florida to open the season.

• Kamryn Dziak, who hit three 3-pointers in the win over Georgia Southern, leads the team with 30 treys this season, ranking fifth in the Sun Belt with 1.7 3-pointers per game. She has 93 3-pointers for her career, good for 10th place in school history.

• Hannah Sadler went 6-for-7 from the field to score 12 points in last week's win over South Alabama, scoring eight of GSU's 17 points in the overtime session. She followed with six points and five rebounds vs. Troy.

• Freshman Alex Gitchenko averaged 8.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in two games last week.

• Georgia State has already used nine different starting lineups, with 10 different players starting at least one game. No Panther has started every games, and only two (Kamryn Dziak and Alyssa Phillip) have played in every game.

SERIES NOTES vs. GEORGIA SOUTHERN

• Georgia State has won two in row and nine of the last 12 games against its in-state rival.

• Georgia State and Georgia Southern split a pair of games last season, with each team winning on its home court. The Eagles won 77-69 in Statesboro, and then the Panthers answered two days later with a 71-66 victory at the GSU Sports Arena.

• Georgia State has lost the last two meetings at Georgia Southern's Hanner Fieldhouse, but before that the Panthers won seven straight on the Eagles' homecourt, from 1990-91 through 2018-19.

• The Panthers and Eagles began playing as Sun Belt Conference foes in 2014-15, and since then, Georgia State holds a 10-5 advantage, including seven straight wins from Feb. 22, 2016 through March 9, 2019.

• The two programs first met Jan. 9, 1978, and have played 51 times. Georgia Southern leads the overall series 27-24.

• Head coach Gene Hill is 4-3 vs. Georgia Southern.

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