NEW ORLEANS - Junior Makeba Ponder of the Georgia State women's basketball team was named to the 2016-17 Preseason All-Sun Belt team the conference announced on Tuesday. The Panthers were picked to finish ninth in the preseason coaches' poll.

Ponder earned a spot on the second team after scoring 594 points in her first two seasons at GSU. She enters her junior year averaging 11.6 points per game. Ponder has led the team in scoring in each of first two seasons and has led the Sun Belt Conference in most 3-point baskets made per game over the same span (2.46 per game as a freshman and 2.30 as a sophomore).

The Panthers finished 10th out of 11 teams last season, but return all five starters this season. The Sun Belt coaches picked GSU to finish ninth out of 12 teams in 2016-17.