1. Men’s basketball wins outright Sun Belt Championship
Devonta White discusses the emotions of Senior Day next to the Sun Belt trophy.
Georgia State Men’s Basketball clinched the regular season Sun Belt Conference Championship when they defeated Texas State with a 66-55 victory at Strahan Coliseum on March 1. It was the Panthers’ first regular season conference tournament victory since the 2000-01 season. The victory also clinched the number one seed for Georgia State in the Sun Belt Conference tournament.
Georgia State began the season 3-6 before it embarked on a 14-game winning streak that lasted from December to February that, at the time, was the sixth-longest in the nation.
The Panthers finished the regular season with a record of 25-7, along with a record of 17-1 in the Sun Belt. No other team in the conference had less than six losses.
2. 1,000 point scorers
Men’s and women’s basketball honored individual accomplishments by its players this season.
On the men’s side, Georgia State became one of three school’s in the nation with four active players to score at least 1,000 points for their collegiate careers. The four players were R.J. Hunter, Ryan Harrow, Manny Atkins and Devonta White.
Atkins was the latest to reach the millennial mark when he scored 21 points in a 75-60 Panthers win over the University of Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks on February 20. He came into the game needing only seven to reach 1,000. Three days earlier, in the team’s first matchup since Troy snapped the 14-game winning streak, Harrow reached the 1,000 point plateau when Georgia State defeated Texas State by a score of 68-41 at the Sports Arena. Hunter scored his 1,000th point in the loss to Troy.
White achieved this feat in the Panthers’ final game of the 2012-2013 season—a 90-84 overtime loss at home to Northeastern.
The women’s team also had two starters reach 1,000 points. Senior guard Kendra Long scored hers at the free-throw line in the key moments of a game at home against Kennesaw State.
Redshirt junior guard Alisha Andrews scored her 1,000th career point against Western Kentucky with a three pointer in the team’s last regular season game on March 8th.
3. Albert Wilson invited to NFL combine
Albert Wilson raised some eyebrows at the NFL Combine.
Despite the football team’s woes last season, it did produce a bright spot when wide receiver Albert Wilson was invited to tryout at the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
At the combine, Wilson posted an official time of 4.43 seconds in the 40-yard dash—tied for the seventh-fastest for his position. In the gauntlet drills, Wilson caught every pass thrown to him.
Wilson has since visited the San Francisco 49ers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers following his performance at the Combine. He’s also been said to be on the radar of the Green Bay Packers, whose scouts were at Georgia State’s Pro Day.
His invitation was a first for the Georgia State football program whose 2013-2014 season was only its fourth in existence.
4. Michael Nwiloh Becomes First Georgia State Soccer Player Drafted to MLS
Former Georgia State defender Michael Nwiloh made history when he became the first Panther to be drafted into Major League Soccer in January. Chivas USA selected Nwiloh in the fourth round of the MLS Super Draft with the 59th overall pick.
The 23-year-old was drafted into MLS despite not being invited into the league’s combine and received little discussion in terms of him being a potential draftee.
Hailing from Conyers, Nwiloh played four years with Georgia State, in which he finished with nine career points on two goals and five assists after redshirting his freshman year in 2009. In December, the National Soccer Coaches’ Association of America named Nwiloh to its All-South Region Second Team.
Chivas recently signed Nwiloh to an official contract.
5. Father-Son Duo named Sun Belt Conference Coach and Player of the Year
The Sun Belt Conference named Georgia State guard R.J. Hunter and his father, Head Coach Ron Hunter, were named the conference’s player and coach of the year, respectively.
In Georgia State’s first year in the conference, R.J. Hunter finished fourth in the conference in scoring with 18.3 points per game. He also finished the season with the highest free throw percentage in the conference, shooting more than 88 percent from the free-throw line. Hunter was also in the top 50 in the NCAA in steals and the top 20 in the nation for free-throw percentage.
Head coach Ron Hunter led the Panthers to a 24-7 record in 2013-14, including a 17-1 mark in the team’s first year in the conference beating every team in the conference.
Tere-Apisah is 96-24 in singles matches her four years playing for the Panthers.
6. Abigail Tere-Apisah defeated No. 4 Zsofi Susani of California in straight sets—the biggest upset of her career.
7. Hannah Stefanoff’s successful 2013 included her winning two races: the JSU/Struts Invitational and the Coach “O” Classic where she beat her personal bests in the 4,000 and 5,000 meter races. Stefanoff had five top 10 finishes and was named Sun Belt Runner of the Week twice.
8. Georgia State baseball defeated Illinois 5-4 in ten innings on Opening Day at the Baseball Complex with a walk-off home run from Greg Bowder.
9. Maria Palacios won the 21st annual John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate for her first win of her Georgia State career. Palacios has had three top five finishes this season.
In its second season, the sand volleyball team was able to earn a AVCA top 10 ranking.
10. Georgia State’s sand volleyball team was ranked as high as No. 8 in the AVCA rankings in only its second year of existence.
