Photo by Jason Luong | The Signal
Men’s Basketball
On a night where the banners were revealed for last season’s NCAA tournament run, the regular season tipped off Nov. 13 in the new-look GSU Sports Arena for Men’s basketball in winning fashion.
After shooting 7-27 from three-point range and having the team’s leading scorer Kevin Ware not scoring a single point in the second half, Georgia State still defeated Middle Georgia College 73-54.
The Panthers have won their third consecutive season opener and remain undefeated in coach Ron Hunter’s home openers, moving to 5-0.
Ware led all scorers with 14 points, while Jeremy Hollowell contributed 12 points, five rebounds and five steals in his debut. Redshirt freshman Jeff Thomas scored five points and shot 1-10 from the field in his highly anticipated debut.
The Men face Emmanuel College next on Nov. 19 at the GSU Sports Arena.
Women’s Basketball
Determined to wipe away memories of 2014-15’s losing season, the new-look Women’s Basketball team rallied from a 16-point deficit on the road against Kennesaw State to take the season opener.
The Panthers were under the lead of sophomore star guard Makeba Ponder’s 19 points, which included two free throws with 9.5 seconds left in the contest. Junior Alaysia Mitchell led the team in rebounds with 10 in her Georgia State debut.
Despite struggling from the free throw line and going 13 for 25 in the category, the team made up for it by forcing 15 Owl turnovers and winning the rebounding battle 37-32.
The Women will remain on the road and face Tennessee Tech on Nov. 19 in Cookeville, Tennessee.
