Thanks to a perfect 3-3 from three by Eren Banks and a second-half explosion, Georgia Southern men's basketball (11-9, 4-4 SBC) pulled away late in the first half and never looked back, downing Coastal Carolina (8-12, 1-6) for its third consecutive victory.
"These guys adapted to the changing circumstances, obviously, with the weather, and it was good to get a win," Bice-Peace head men's basketball coach Charlie Henry said."We beat a team that will win some games here down the stretch and probably surprise some people. It was good to see us play really well and do that."
The first three minutes went by scoreless before a Banks floater in the lane put the home team up first. Eugene Brown III's corner three gave the Eagles a slight 9-7 advantage at the under-12.
GS found late life in the first half. Three consecutive turnovers led to more points, leading by 10 for the first time after Avantae Parker's wide-open three at 2:14. The team converted on four of the next five with Bradley Douglas' steal and slam making it a 37-24 lead at the break.
An 8-0 run early in the next frame continued the onslaught and allowed the Eagles to pull away. Banks and Adante' Holiman knocked down threes, and a tough layup by Braylhan Thomas made it an 18-point game and forced a Coastal timeout, the closest the Chants got for the remainder of the contest.
Banks continued his hot shooting in the ensuing minutes, knocking down his third of three three-pointers at 7:24, making it a 66-42 game.
The Eagles got to empty the bench in the remaining eight minutes of the game. Collin Kuhl knocked down his first career three, slammed home a dunk and found a wide-open Tyler Bush in the corner for a three, his first as an Eagle.
Luke Keller also got into the action in the final two minutes as the Eagles sailed to an 85-58 win, their largest of the season.
For the game, the Eagles shot 32-70 (45.7) from the field and 11-27 (40.7) from three. It was the first 20-point win for the Eagles since Dec. 30, 2023 against Southern Miss and the team's second three-game winning streak of the season.
Banks' 18 led the way with Holiman (13), Parker (13) and Douglas (10) also reaching double figures. Banks also chipped in eight rebounds to lead the team, who was +11 on boards during the game. Tyson Brown had a trio of blocks, and Douglas had four assists and a career-best four swipes in the victory.
Douglas is the first Eagle since Tyren Moore did it in the Sun Belt Tournament last season to have at least 10 points, four steals and four assists in a game.
GS has another date with Marshall on Saturday at the Hill.
