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Team: Georgia Southern Eagles
Home Game Field: W.S. Hanner Fieldhouse
Head Coach: Mark Byington
Conference Titles: Seven (regular season), Three (tournament)
Rivalries: Georgia State
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'Georgia Southern has a strong basketball legacy that began in the 1920s when Georgia Southern was known as Georgia Normal School. In its first time on the basketball court, the team formerly called the Blue Tide won its first victory against Benedictine. The team was later called the Professors until the 1950s, when it took the name of the Eagles for the team and the bird as its mascot. Georgia Southern has only had 13 coaches over the long course of its basketball program, which has allowed many of the teams to achieve stellar records because of the experience put into building these teams. Mark Byington is the 13th head coach for the Eagles, and he has had much success in the Sun Belt Conference leading the team. Grab your Georgia Southern Eagles basketball tickets today at StubHub.'
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The Eagles men's basketball program has been under the leadership of Mark Byington since 2013 when he was hired as head coach for the Georgia Southern Eagles men's basketball team. During his first six seasons at Georgia Southern, Byington led his teams to win 111 games, which is among the best for any coach in recent years. In four of these first six seasons, the Eagles had the four highest RPIs earned in the last 29 years of basketball at Georgia Southern. For the 2018-2019 season, the Eagles recorded 20-plus wins for the third time in five years and in consecutive seasons for the first time in 30 years. The Eagles program has ranked in the top three teams for four of its first five years in the
Sun Belt Conference
. The Eagles tied for second place in the Sun Belt and made the semifinals of the Sun Belt Tournament for the second straight season in 2018-2019. Before joining Georgia Southern, Byington was an assistant coach for nine seasons at the College of Charleston.
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The Eagles basketball team plays its home games at the
W.S. Hanner Fieldhouse
. This facility was opened in 1969 and is named for W.S. Hanner, the faculty athletic chairman from 1935 to 1959. The Fieldhouse is part of the Hanner Complex, which contains the health, physical education and professional studies and the coaches' offices. Besides the basketball court, the complex has a gymnasium, a weight room, an eight-lane pool and a gymnastics room. In 1995, the Hanner Fieldhouse underwent a $500,000 renovation that included new chairback seats in place of the floor-level bleachers, new floor graphics and portable baskets with shot clocks.
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The rivalry between the Eagles and the
Georgia State Panthers
is called Modern Day Hate, and it has been a staple in the lives of fans of both basketball teams since 1972. The change in conference memberships hasn't changed the rivalry, and the Eagles led with 43-20 through 63 meetings before Feb. 1, 2019.
''Georgia Southern joined the Sun Belt Conference in 2013. Before this inclusion, Georgia Southern was part of the Southern Conference, where it won 10 conference titles since 1993. The Eagles basketball team began playing in the Sun Belt Conference in 2014.'
'Over the course of Georgia Southern Eagles basketball history, there have been many players of note. Julius Jenkins (1999-03) is the all-time top scorer with 1,870 points. Johnny Mills (1971-74) has the record for the best career average and best season average. Michael Curry (1986-90) holds the school record of most games played and was the top scorer for 14 games in his last season. He holds the school record for more than 1,000 points and ranks in the top 10 for field goal percentages, steals and rebounds. Jeff Sanders (1986-89) had his jersey retired by the school. He was a top record holder for field goals, free throws, rebounds and points scored.'