By ALEX PELLEGRINO
apellegrino@statesboroherald.net
The Georgia Southern men’s basketball team has no choice but to make a quick turnaround after Saturday’s frustrating 62-57 home loss to Chattanooga on Saturday.
Next up for the Eagles (10-12, 3-8) is powerful Appalachian State (17-6, 9-3), which is tied with UNC Greensboro for first place in the Southern Conference’s North division.
“It certainly doesn’t get any easier,” Eagle coach Jeff Price said. “It continues to be tough.”
Like the Eagles, the Mountaineers probably won’t be in a good mood for tonight’s 7:30 game. ASU, which beat GSU 87-84 on Dec. 16 and knocked the Eagles out of the league tournament a year ago, is coming off a 76-72 overtime loss at Furman Saturday.
“App is one of those teams that you just have to be ready to play,” said junior Louis Graham, whose team-high 16 points and 11 rebounds Saturday marked his second straight double-double and 10th this year. “You just have to come ready and give it all you’ve got. We’ve got to be amped up, and we know they are going to be. They are looking to get one on the road.”
GSU freshman Antoine Johnson and Blake Thompson both saw career-highs in minutes Saturday as they filled in for starting point guard Dwayne Foreman, who was benched with a hamstring injury. Price said they won’t do anything to jeopardize the recovery of Foreman, who is listed as day-to-day.
“Our whole goal right now is the tournament, and I think we’ve shown we can play with anybody,” Price said. “We need to shoot for the tournament, and we aren’t going to do anything to make (Foreman) take two steps back.”
Women look to keep momentum
Winners of two straight, the Lady Eagles will look to extend their streak in a 5 p.m. game today against UNC Greensboro, one of the top teams in the SoCon.
Eagle coach Rusty Cram, who became the program’s all-time winningest coach with Saturday’s 46-37 home win over Elon, said he expects fireworks from the Spartans.
“I think it’ll be a very high volatile game,” he said. “They are probably the most athletic team in the conference from start to finish. We are going to have to come out and play hard and intense. It’s on our floor, so we’ve got to come out and play poised and smart. Hopefully, we’ll give them a good run for their money.”
UNCG (15-8, 8-4) won at Furman, 65-58, on Saturday and defeated the Lady Eagles (9-14, 4-8), 80-55, on Jan. 6.
“It’s definitely going to be a physical game,” said junior guard Shawnda Atwood, who had 11 points and eight boards in Saturday’s victory. “We are going to have to play smart and be very competitive.”
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 489-9413.
apellegrino@statesboroherald.net
The Georgia Southern men’s basketball team has no choice but to make a quick turnaround after Saturday’s frustrating 62-57 home loss to Chattanooga on Saturday.
Next up for the Eagles (10-12, 3-8) is powerful Appalachian State (17-6, 9-3), which is tied with UNC Greensboro for first place in the Southern Conference’s North division.
“It certainly doesn’t get any easier,” Eagle coach Jeff Price said. “It continues to be tough.”
Like the Eagles, the Mountaineers probably won’t be in a good mood for tonight’s 7:30 game. ASU, which beat GSU 87-84 on Dec. 16 and knocked the Eagles out of the league tournament a year ago, is coming off a 76-72 overtime loss at Furman Saturday.
“App is one of those teams that you just have to be ready to play,” said junior Louis Graham, whose team-high 16 points and 11 rebounds Saturday marked his second straight double-double and 10th this year. “You just have to come ready and give it all you’ve got. We’ve got to be amped up, and we know they are going to be. They are looking to get one on the road.”
GSU freshman Antoine Johnson and Blake Thompson both saw career-highs in minutes Saturday as they filled in for starting point guard Dwayne Foreman, who was benched with a hamstring injury. Price said they won’t do anything to jeopardize the recovery of Foreman, who is listed as day-to-day.
“Our whole goal right now is the tournament, and I think we’ve shown we can play with anybody,” Price said. “We need to shoot for the tournament, and we aren’t going to do anything to make (Foreman) take two steps back.”
Women look to keep momentum
Winners of two straight, the Lady Eagles will look to extend their streak in a 5 p.m. game today against UNC Greensboro, one of the top teams in the SoCon.
Eagle coach Rusty Cram, who became the program’s all-time winningest coach with Saturday’s 46-37 home win over Elon, said he expects fireworks from the Spartans.
“I think it’ll be a very high volatile game,” he said. “They are probably the most athletic team in the conference from start to finish. We are going to have to come out and play hard and intense. It’s on our floor, so we’ve got to come out and play poised and smart. Hopefully, we’ll give them a good run for their money.”
UNCG (15-8, 8-4) won at Furman, 65-58, on Saturday and defeated the Lady Eagles (9-14, 4-8), 80-55, on Jan. 6.
“It’s definitely going to be a physical game,” said junior guard Shawnda Atwood, who had 11 points and eight boards in Saturday’s victory. “We are going to have to play smart and be very competitive.”
Alex Pellegrino can be reached at (912) 489-9413.
