Men's Basketball Sun Belt Conference

Red Wolves Edge Georgia Southern in SBC Tournament Opener

PENSACOLA, Fla. - The first game of the 2021 Sun Belt Conference tournament featured three ties and six lead changes, and was in doubt into the final seconds before the Arkansas State Red Wolves sealed the game at the charity stripe. Arkansas State (11-12) held off a late rally from Georgia Southern (13-13), doing so by connecting on five crucial free throws in the last 30 seconds of the game, and it claimed a 62-58 win over the Eagles.

Neither team held a lead of more than three points until a layup from Arkansas State’s Antwon Jackson put the Red Wolves on top 17-12 with 11:36 remaining in the first half. Shortly after that basket, Arkansas State put together a 10-2 run that helped build a 27-16 lead, its largest of the night. Georgia Southern crept back into the game, closing to within four before settling for a halftime deficit of 31-26.

Early in the second half, Georgia Southern’s Gedi Juozapaitis nailed a jumper on a fast break that gave the Eagles a 36-35 lead, capping a 10-4 spurt, but Arkansas State answered immediately with a layup from Norchad Omier that reclaimed the lead for the Red Wolves. That sparked a 7-0 run for Arkansas State that concluded with a 3-pointer from Malcolm Farrington at the 13:47 mark. 

The Eagles clawed back. Elijah McCadden scored a layup with 11:08 to go that got the Eagles within two at 45-43. After a bucked from Arkansas State’s Christian Willis, Kamari Brown of Georgia Southern scored to again get the Eagles within two, and after Willis missed on the next trip down the floor, McCadden cashed in from 3-point land to tie things up at 47. 

Arkansas State answered with a 10-2 run to take a 57-49 lead with 5:44 to go in the game, but after the fast break 3-pointer from Farrington that gave the Red Wolves that lead, they did not make another field goal in the game. 

Meanwhile, the Eagles scratched closer. Grant Weatherford scored to pull Georgia Southern within six at 57-51. A pair of charity tosses from Juozapaitis cut the margin to 57-53, McCadden tallied a free throw with 2:14 on the clock to make it 57-54, and Juozapaitis knocked down a jumper with 27 seconds to go that made it a one point game at 57-56. 

That’s when the Red Wolves showed their poise. Willis sank a pair of foul shots with 25 seconds to play, and Markise Davis did the same with 11 seconds to play to keep the Arkansas State lead at three points, 61-58. Juozapaitis got a look at a potential tying 3-pointer, but it went begging, and Marquis Eaton secured the rebound. He was fouled and went to the line for a pair, and after he sank the first to make it a four point game, he missed the second, and the Red Wolves hung on for the 62-58 win. 

Farrington led all scorers in the game with 16 points off the Arkansas State bench. He made 5-of-10 shots in the game, including 4-of-8 from long range, and he made both of his free throw attempts. Eaton had 14 points, five rebounds, and four assists, and Omier added 10 points and 18 rebounds, recording his 14th double-double of the season. 

For the Eagles, only Juozapaitis scored in double-figures with12 points on 5-of -1 shooting. Both McCadden and Kamari Brown grabbed 10 boards for Georgia Southern. 

Arkansas State held Georgia Southern to just 3-of-18 shooting from the perimeter, and the Red Wolves outscored the Eagles 16-10 off turnovers, 17-5 on the fast break, and 23-17 off the bench.

The win advances Arkansas State to the SBC Championships quartefinals Saturday against the Georgia State Panthers (14-5) at 5:30 p.m. at the Pensacola Bay Center. The Panthers are the SBC East Division’s top-seed, and won their final six SBC games of the regular season.