Back at Home Thursday vs. Troy

GEORGIA STATE (8-8, 1-3) vs. TROY (11-6, 3-1)
Thursday, Jan. 12 | 7 p.m. | GSU Convocation Center

WATCH: ESPN+
LISTEN: Georgia State Radio Network on WRAS-FM 88.5 and the GSU Athletics mobile app.

THE TIPOFF: Georgia State returns home to host Troy at the GSU Convocation Center Thursday at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

> The Panthers (8-8, 1-3 Sun Belt) look to snap a two-game losing streak after falling 78-70 at Louisiana. Dwon Odom led GSU with 18 points in that game.

> Troy (11-6, 3-1) has won three straight Sun Belt games over Texas State, Old Dominion and Arkansas State to stand in a four-way tie for first place in the league.

> The Panthers are 8-4 at the GSU Convocation Center.

> Junior guard Brenden Tucker recorded season highs with 25 points and six rebounds last week at ULM, including 10-of-13 free throws. Tucker is averaging 13.5 points in Sun Belt games and 11.7 ppg overall.

> Sophomore guard Dwon Odom leads the Panthers in scoring (15.2 ppg), assists (51) and steals (19) while ranking second on the team in rebounding (4.9 pg) and blocked shots (14).

> Odom, the No. 8 scorer in the Sun Belt Conference, has reached 20 points four times, including a career-high 27 in the win over UNC Asheville and 24 vs. Belmont.

> Sophomore forward Ja'Heim Hudson averages 9.9 points and leads GSU in rebounding (7.6/7th in Sun Belt). He has three double-doubles on the season, most recently with 18 points and 11 rebounds vs. South Alabama.

> Georgia State gave first-year head coach Jonas Hayes his first Sun Belt Conference win, and with a 68-58 victory over South Alabama. Ja'Heim Hudson recorded a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds, Dwon Odom also scored 18 and the Panthers rallied from a 13-point deficit late in the first half with an 18-0 scoring run.

> The Panthers rank second in the Sun Belt and No. 56 in DI in scoring defense, holding their opponents to 64.1 points per game, including 62.3 ppg. GSU limited James Madison, the nation's top scoring team at the time, to 63 points its Sun Belt opener.

SERIES NOTES: Troy holds a slight edge in the overall series at 22-20, including a 10-9 edge in the Sun Belt era. The teams have split the last eight games.

> Since Georgia State rejoined the Sun Belt for the 2013-14 season, the only team that has a winning record against the Panthers is Troy.

> This is Troy's first visit to the new GSU Convocation Center but it will be fifth straight meeting to be played on Georgia State's home court.

> Troy won the only meeting last year, 67-63, but Georgia State swept both meetings in 2020-21, winning 80-66 and 65-53 on back-to-back days at the GSU Sports Arena. The second meeting of 2019-20 was also at GSU, won by Troy 62-55.

> The two schools formerly played as conference foes in the TAAC/Atlantic Sun from 1996-97 through 2004-05.

CHARITY CASE: Georgia State ranks No. 2 in the Sun Belt and No. 58 in Division I in free throw shooting at 75.0 percent.

> Individually, Dwon Odom (.818) is fourth in the Sun Belt and Brenden Tucker (.780) is sixth. Odom ranks fifth in the league in free throws made.

SHINING IN THE SUN BELT: Since returning to the Sun Belt Conference for the 2013-14 season, Georgia State has been the league's most successful program:

> GSU has won four Sun Belt Tournament titles since 2014 (2015, 1018, 2019, 2022). No other program has more than one in that time.

> Georgia State has finished first or second in the league standings in six of the last nine years, including regular-season titles in 2014, 2015 and 2019 and the East Division crown in 2021.

> The Panthers lead all Sun Belt teams in overall wins (195) and conference wins (108) in that time, ahead of Louisiana (190/100) and Sun Belt newcomer Old Dominion (190 overall).

> Since 2013-14, GSU has a .650 winning percentage in all games, including a .667 mark in Sun Belt contests.

HE EARNED IT: Kalik Brooks, a fourth-year junior from Alpharetta, Ga., joined the GSU program as a walk-on and was awarded a scholarship prior to this season.

> Brooks has started nine games and is averaging 4.9 points and 2.7 rebounds.

> He is shooting 44 percent (16-35) from 3-point range

> Brooks averaged 9.3 points in the three-game Capitol Classic, including a career-high 12 points vs. UNC Asheville. He contributed eight points at Auburn, nine vs. Rhode Island, and nine vs. Toccoa Falls.

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Players Mentioned

#21 Kalik Brooks: G; 6' 5"; Freshman

#15 Ja'Heim Hudson: F; 6' 7"; Sophomore

#1 Dwon Odom: G; 6' 2"; Sophomore

#5 Brenden Tucker: G; 6' 3"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#21 Kalik Brooks
: 6' 5"; Freshman
: G

#15 Ja'Heim Hudson
: 6' 7"; Sophomore
: F

#1 Dwon Odom
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: G

#5 Brenden Tucker
: 6' 3"; Junior
: G