Panthers Look to Extend Seven-Game Winning Streak at SMU Monday

ATLANTA-Playing its third-straight opponent from the state of Texas and looking to extend its seven-game winning streak, Georgia State faces SMU on Monday night at 7 p.m. ET at Moody Coliseum.

Georgia State (8-3, 2-0 Sun Belt) has won seven-straight games after earning an 11th-straight home win with an 81-69 victory over Texas State on Saturday. Freshman Joe Jones III just missed a double-double finishing with eight points and a career-high 11 rebounds.

SMU (8-2, 0-0 American) has lost two-straight games after winning its first eight to start the season. The Mustangs lost to Georgia 87-85 in double overtime on Friday night in Athens.

Monday's contest can be heard live on WRAS-FM 88.5 and the GSU Mobile App with Dave Cohen, now in his 37^th year as the Voice of the Panthers, calling the action. The game will also air live on ESPN3 with Dave Raymond and Stephen Howard on the call. Live statistics and live audio will be available at GeorgiaStateSports.com and on most mobile devices.

Following two conference games, Georgia State will step back into non-conference play for its next two games beginning on Monday night. The Panthers' 8-3 start is tied for the second-best 11-game start in program history and marks the first time since the 2015-16 starting the season with eight wins in the first 11 games.

First year head coach Rob Lanier has matched the most wins in the first 11 games by any first-year coach in program history as the Panthers look to close out the most successful decade in program history. Georgia State has won 196 games since Jan. 1, 2010, blowing past the 158 games won in the 2000's.

Georgia State enters play holding opponents to just 26.9 percent from 3-point range which ranks No. 18 in the country and first in the Sun Belt Conference. Offensively the Panthers are shooting 41.2 percent from behind the 3-point line which stands No. 5 in the country. GSU is also averaging 80.3 points per contest which would be among the top five best marks in school history and currently ranks No. 32 in the NCAA.

Junior Kane Williams who was named the 2K Empire Classic Tournament MVP and earned All-Sun Belt Preseason Second Team honors is currently averaging 13.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game, while shooting 45.7 percent from 3-point range.

Lone senior Damon Wilson is averaging 12.4 points per contest while shooting 49.4 percent from the floor and 63.6 percent from 3-point range. He is also pulling down a team-high 5.0 rebounds per game after tying a career-high with 22 points last Thursday night.

Redshirt-sophomore Justin Roberts, who earned 2K Empire Classic All-Tournament recognition, is fourth on the team averaging 12.1 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. He has swiped a team-high 25 steals, an average of 2.27 per game which ranks No. 29 in the country.

Redshirt-junior Corey Allen leads the Panthers in scoring averaging 15.7 points per game while shooting 44.7 percent from the floor. He leads GSU with 28 3-pointers and is shooting 40.0 percent from beyond the arc.

Notes:

Georgia State's seven-game winning streak is tied for the seventh-longest in the country.
In the latest NET Rankings as of Sunday morning the Panthers are ranked No. 112 in the country, the second highest among all Sun Belt Conference schools (Appalachian State, No. 101). SMU is currently ranked No. 102.
With a 3-pointer last time out, Georgia State has made at least one 3-pointer in 759 games dating back to Feb. 18, 1995.
Since the start of the 2013-14 season, the Panthers have won 142 games, the most of any NCAA Division 1 program in the state of Georgia.

Following Monday's game, Georgia State return home and prepare to close out the non-conference portion of the schedule hosting Middle Georgia State on Dec. 30, at 7 p.m. in the GSU Sports Arena.

Quick Notes:
•   Georgia State and SMU will meet for the third time, but first since 1983.
•   Georgia State is 3-0 against teams from Texas this year. The Panthers are 12-4 against teams from the Lone Star State since the start of the 2017-18 season.
•   Georgia State is 3-2 all-time against teams from the AAC with the only losses coming to Cincinnati and Houston in the last two NCAA Tournaments.
•   Last time out GSU extended its winning streak to seven-straight games with an 81-69 win over Texas State on Saturday night. The seven-game streak is tied for the ninth-longest in the country.
•   Georgia State's 8-3 start is tied for the second-best start in program history. It marks the first time since 2015-16 the Panthers have won 8 of their first 11 games.
•   At 8-3, first year head coach Rob Lanier has matched the 8-3 start of previous head coach Ron Hunter for the best start for a first-year head coach in program history.
•   As the decade comes to an end, the Panthers have won 196 games during the 2010's. The previous best decade was the 2000's when Georgia State won 158.
•   Since returning to the Sun Belt in 2013-14, Georgia State has finished in the top two of the final regular season conference standings five times in six seasons.
•   In the latest NET Rankings as of Sunday morning, GSU is ranked No. 112 in the nation, second among all Sun Belt schools (Appalachian State, No. 101). SMU is currently ranked No. 102.
•   The Panthers have won 11-straight home games dating back to last season and 19 of their last 20 home contests. The streak is currently the fourth-longest in program history and tied for the 19th-longest in the nation.
•   Georgia State is currently ranked No. 18 in the country and No. 1 in the Sun Belt Conference allowing opponents to shoot just 26.9 percent from 3-point range.
•   GSU is shooting 41.2 percent from 3-point range which ranks No. 5 in the NCAA and No. 1 in the league.
•   Georgia State is currently scoring 80.3 points per game which would be among the top five best scoring seasons in program history. The average is currently ranked No. 32 in the country.
•   Junior Kane Williams, who was named Tournament MVP of the 2K Empire Classic and to the All-Sun Belt Preseason Second Team is averaging 13.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.
•   Justin Roberts was named to the 2K Empire Classic All-Tournament Team and is currently averaging 2.27 steals per game, No. 29 in the country. He already has three games this season where he recorded five swipes.
•   Last year, Georgia State made its second-straight and third NCAA Tournament in the last five years, the best stretch in program history.
•   During that same time frame, GSU has won more games (142) than any other NCAA Division I team in Georgia.
•   Kane Williams is one of just nine active juniors in the country to have won conference tournaments in each of their first two years and appeared in NCAA Tournament games.

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