ATLANTA-- After spending a week on the road, the Panthers return to the Convocation Center to host Toccoa Falls on Monday, Nov. 18 at 7:00 p.m.
                    ESPN+ and on the radio in Atlanta on WRAS-FM 88.5, GSU Athletics app. 

SERIES NOTES: Georgia State and Toccoa Falls are meeting for the fifth time in program history. The Panthers are 4-0 in the series after defeating the Screaming Eagles 122-45 at home on Dec. 19, 2023. 

Overall: 4-0

At home: 4-0

On the road: 0-0

Neutral: 0-0

PANTHERS IN THE SUN BELT

> Led by Nick McMullen, who leads the conference and ranks 14th nationally in rpg, the Panthers rank third innthe conference for rebounds per game with 42.67. 

> Georgia State also ranks top ten in the Sun Belt in assist/turnover ratio (5th/ 1.16) and free throw percentage (9th/ 67.2).  

> Three Panthers (Cesare Edwards, Zarique Nutter and Nick McMullen) scored double-doubles in the season opener against Ball State (Nov. 4) to lead the Sun Belt and rank 46th in the nation for double-doubles. 

KEY RETURNERS: In a rebuild off-season for the Panthers' basketball team, head coach Jonas Hayes retained five returners from the 2023-24 squad, including Toneari Lane, Malik Ferguson, DK Dut, Brevyn Coleman and Aaron Oh

> The Panthers key returner Toneari Lane is the Panthers' leading scorer with 15.3 ppg, 2.0 rpg and five assists.

> The veteran guard ranks top 10 in the Sun Belt for points per game (9th/ 15.3), three-pointers per-game (5th/ 2.67), three-pointers made (8th/ 8) and total points (10th/ 46). 

> Lane has led the Panthers in scoring in all but one contest so far this season. The Grayson, Ga., native scored a team-high 15 points in the Panthers' road contest at Mississippi State (Nov. 8). He followed up with 17 points in the Panthers' road game at Jacksonvile State (Nov. 13) 

> Lane, the team's second-leading scorer last season at 13.1 ppg, led the Sun Belt in the 2023-24 season in 3-point percentage (.331) and 3-pointers per game (2.7). His 82 3-pointers are the eighth-highest season total in GSU history.

> Sophomore returnee Malik Ferguson started in eight games for the Panthers, averaging 4.4 ppg, 0.5 rpg and totaled 35 points on the season.   

VETERAN TRANSFER SQUAD: Head coach Jonas Hayes and his staff have rebuilt the GSU roster with addition of seven transfers and four freshmen. 

> The transfer squad brings experienced veteran players including Justin Archer (graduate, Radford), Cesare Edwards (senior, Missouri State), Zarique Nutter (senior, Northern Illinois), Darnell Evans (senior, Caldwell) and Nick McMullen (senior, UNC-Asheville). 

> Northern Illinois transfer Zarique Nutter is the Panthers' second-leading scorer with 14.7 ppg, 7.0 rpg and 10 assists,. 

>  Along with two other Panthers, Nutter leads the Sun Belt and ranks 21st in the nation for double-doubles. 

> Nutter leads the Panthers with 3.3 assists per game, ranking top 10 overall in the Sun Belt. He also ranks top 10 in the conference in offensive rebounds (2nd/3.33), rebounds per game (10th/ 7.0) and free throws (5th/ 15). 

> Nutter put up a team-high 17 points in the Panthers contest at Jax State (Nov. 13). 

> Nutter scored a double-double in the Panthers' season-opener against Ball State (Nov. 4), totaling 16 points and 12 rebounds in the 71-66 victory. 

> At NIU, nutter averaged 13.7 points and 5.2 rebounds over the last two seasons. He was the Huskies second-leading scorer last season. 

> Senior Cesare Edwards ranks third on the Panthers' leaderboard with 12.3 ppg, 7.7 rpg and four assists. 

> The forward ranks  fifth in the Sun Belt with 7.7 rpg.  He also ranks sixth in the conference for field goals with 17. 

> In the Panthers' season opening win over Ball State (Nov. 4), Edwards led the team with 17 points and 11 rebounds to score his first double-double of the season. 

> Edwards is no stranger to head coach Jonas Hayes Staff. Before transferring to Missouri State, Edwards participated on the Xavier team that coach Hayes led before coming to GSU. 

> The 6-10 center played in 33 games in his single season at Missouri State, Averaging 7.2 points and 4.8 rebounds while playing 18 minutes per game

> Senior Nick McMullen leads the Panthers defensively, totaling 33 rebounds so far this season. His 11.0 rebounds per game leads the Sun Belt and ranks 14th nationally. 

> McMullen also leads the Sun Belt with 9.33 offensive rebounds per game, ranking sixth nationally for offensive rebounds per game. . 

McMullen averages 8.3 ppg, 11.0 rpg and four assists. 

> McMullen grabbed a team season-high 14 rebounds in the Panthers' contest at Jax State (Nov. 13). 

>  In the Panthers' season-opener against Ball State (Nov. 4), McMullen scored a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. 

> McMullen joins the Panthers squad after two seasons at UNC-Asheville, where he participated on the 2023-24 team who made an NCAA appearance. McMullen averaged 9.0 points and 4.1 rebounds in two seasons (69 games) at UNC Asheville while shooting 57.9 percent from the field. 

> Sophomore transfer Malachi Brown has been a key aspect tot he Panthers' offense, scoring 8.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg and seven assists. 

> Justin Archer, a Graduate transfer who comes to GSU after two seasons at Radford, averages 8.1 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting 66.9 percent from the field over 64 games in his career. 

> Darnell Evans is a prolific scorer who joins the GSU program after two seasons at Division II Caldwell (N.J.) University, where he was a two-time, first-team All-Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference selection. 

> Evans averaged 21 points, along with 4.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.1 steals per game in two seasons at Caldwell.

Following the home contest against Toccoa Falls, the Panthers host North Carolina Central on Friday, Nov. 22 at 7:00 p.m. before traveling to Jacksonville, Fla. for the Jacksonville Classic on Nov. 26-27.