Huntington, W. Va.-- The Panthers conclude the 2023-24 season with a two-game road series against first place Marshall on Jan. 27 at 6:00 p.m.

STATE IN THE SUN BELT: 

> The Panthers are in a four-way tie for fifth place in the Sun Belt standing with ULM, Southern Miss and Louisiana at 9-7,  trailing Marshall (15-1), Troy (13-3), Old Dominion (11-5) and James Madison (11-5). 

> The Panthers rank third in the Sun Belt in blocks per game (3.3) and bench points (23.5), which ranks 41 in the nation. The Panthers are fourth in the conference in assists per game (13.6) and steals (9.7). 

> Georgia State has reached nine Sun Belt wins for the third time in six seasons under head coach Gene Hill, who guided the Panthers to nine conference wins in 2020-21 and 11 Sun Belt victories in 2018-19, which is the high for the Panthers since joining the conference in 2013-14.

> The Panthers have clinched sweeps on the season against Georgia Southern and JMU.

SERIES VS. MARSHALL: Georgia State and Marshall are meeting for the fifth time in program history. The Panthers are 1-3 on the series after falling 90-78 to the thundering Heard on Jan. 11, 2024. 

> The Panthers earned their first win over the Thundering Herd during the 2022-23 season, when head coach Gene Hill led his team to a 55-54 win in the final 19 seconds of the contest. 

    TOP FRESHMAN IN THE SUN BELT:

 > Freshman point guard Crystal Henderson, who has seen the most time on the court, is the Panthers' second-leading scorer at 11.5 ppg. She leads the team in assists (4.4 pg), which ranks third in the Sun Belt. Henderson's assist-turnover ratio (+1.57) ranks third in the conference.  The Marietta, Ga., native also ranks top 10 in the Sun Belt for steals (1.78 pg). 

> Henderson leads all Sun Belt freshmen in scoring and assists. She is ranked fifth nationally among all freshmen in Assists per game. 

> The freshman leader has recorded 15 double-digit games, including three 20+ games at Clemson (Dec. 16), Troy (Dec. 31) and Georgia Southern (Jan. 24). Henderson notched a career-high 24 points and six free throws in the Panthers' win at Troy (Dec. 31).

> Henderson averages 11.7 ppg and 2.8 rpg in conference play.
 

PANTHERS TO WATCH: 

> Preseason All-Sun Belt guard Mikyla Tolivert leads GSU in scoring (14.1 ppg). The Melbourne, Fla. native is second on the team in 3-point percentage (.361) and free throws (.802), which ranks fifth in the Sun Belt. Tolivert's assist-turnover ratio ranks fifth in the conference (+1.48). She ranks fifth in the conference in steals (2.04 pg) and is top 10 in the conference for assists per game (3.4). Tolivert notched a double-double with a career-high 27 points and 10 rebounds, and sunk a career-high five 3-pointers in the Panthers' conference opener at Troy (Dec. 31). She recorded her second double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds against James Madison (Jan. 31). 

> Tolivert came within one point of matching her career-high in the Panthers' road contest at Southern Miss (Jan. 18) after netting 26 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals. She also went 7-for-7 at the free throw line. 

> Tolivert averages 14.5 ppg, 5.7 rpg and 3.4 assists per game in conference play. 

> Veteran leader Deasia Merrill is the Panthers' second-leading rebounder (6.8 rpg) and ranks third in the Sun Belt for blocks per game (1.16). Merrill is fourth on the Panthers' leaderboard in scoring (8.6 ppg). The 6-1 senior from Villa Rica, Ga., notched her fourth double-double of the season in the Panthers' contest against Arkansas state (Feb. 7). She netted a season-high 17 points, 11 rebounds and one assist at South Alabama (Jan. 20). She also tallied a career-high five blocks against Bethune-Cookman (Nov. 22). Merrill was second on the team in the 2022-23 season with 13.6 points per game, along with a team-leading 7.2 rebounds. She ranked 11th in the Sun Belt in scoring and 10th in rebounding.

> Merrill hit her 500th career rebound in the Panthers' latest win over Georgia Southern (Feb. 3). 

> Junior post player Alyssa Phillip leads the Panthers squad in rebounding with 7.1 rpg. The Norcross, Ga., native has posted double-digit rebounds in five games on the season. She matched her career-high 13 rebounds in the Panthers' contest against Marshall (Jan.11) and Georgia Southern (Feb. 3), which she previously set in the 2022-23 season. She also set a career-high five assists in the Panthers' conference-opening win at Troy (Dec. 31). Phillip averages 4.4 ppg on the season. 

>  Veteran Christeina Bryan averages 5.1 ppg and 3.5 rpg on the season. The Saint Thomas, Jamaica, native has started at the forward position in five conference matchups, averaging 5.3 ppg and 4.1 rpg in Sun Belt play. She missed one game due to injury. Bryan notched a career-high nine rebounds at Clemson (Dec. 16). She also tallied a career-high 19 points and two blocks in the Panthers' victory over LaGrange (Dec. 19).

After facing the Thundering Herd, the Panthers close out the regular season at Coastal Carolina on March 1 at 5:00 p.m.