Two returning starters fuel optimism around Georgia State basketball

Georgia State basketball coach Jonas Hayes always has been a glass-half-full kind of guy. This year he has more tangible reasons for his optimism.

Starting his fourth season as the head coach, Hayes finally has a foundation of experience to start the year. The Panthers have two starters returning — something few others in the transfer portal-gutted Sun Belt Conference can claim — and have already constructed a feeling of connectivity that was lacking in the past.

“That’s something I have been preaching from Day 1,” Hayes said. “Whatever that ‘it factor’ is, you can’t put your finger on it, but you know it when you have it. The people we have in our locker room are really good people. They’re very connected with each other.”

Georgia State will open the season at Eastern Michigan in the Sun Belt-MAC Challenge at 6:30 p.m. Monday (WRAS-FM 88.5). The home opener is Nov. 10 against Presbyterian.

The Panthers were 14-19 last season and rallied in the second half to finish 8-10 in the Sun Belt. They won a game in the conference tournament for the first time in three years.

This season, Georgia State was picked to finish 11th in the 14-team conference by the league’s coaches in the preseason poll.

The Panthers lost three starters. All-Sun Belt selection Cesare Edwards (16.1 points, 7.1 rebounds) and Nick McMullen (9.6 points, 9.5 rebounds) both graduated, and perimeter wiz Toneari Lane (13.8 points, 90 3-pointers) transferred to San Diego.

But GSU has two talented starters back — Jelani Hamilton, a 6-foot-5 guard who played at Wheeler High School, and Malachi Brown, a 6-1 point guard from Buford. The two homegrown players transferred in last year — Hamilton from Iowa State and Brown from Seton Hall — and were thrown into the fire.

Also returning is 6-8 physical forward Clash Peters, who played significant minutes as a freshman, and 6-11 forward Trey Scott, who did not play last season because of injuries. Scott is the son of Georgia Tech legend and longtime NBA standout Dennis Scott.

Hamilton averaged 10.8 points and was second on the team with 55 3-point baskets; he was chosen to the preseason All-Sun Belt team this year. Brown averaged 7.9 points and a team-high 3.4 assists. Peters averaged 4.4 rebounds.

“When you have those guys returning, guys who have bought into what we’re doing, it kind of helps the transition with the new guys,” Hayes said. “It’s a learning curve for our coaches, too. You’ve got to be adaptable, and you’ve got to be able to change on the fly.”

In building this year’s team, Hayes was looking for players who were more versatile on defense and didn’t mind hitting the glass.

“And we’re always looking for guys who can put it in the hole,” he said.

The best of the newcomers include: Jakai Newton, a 6-4 guard from Newton High School who transferred from Indiana; Joah Chappelle, a 6-8 sophomore with a 7-foot-3 wingspan from Dutchtown High School who transferred from Pearl River Community College; Ayouba Berthe, a 6-5 senior transfer from Minot State; Anthony Enoh, an energetic, 6-7 transfer who averaged 11 points and 6.5 rebounds at NAIA Jessup; and Christian Beam, a 7-1 center transfer from Southern Union State Community College. Freshman Micah Tucker, a 6-3 guard from Atlanta’s Overtime Elite program, will also get plenty of minutes.

The Panthers can be encouraged by their two exhibition games — a 65-61 loss to Georgia, an NCAA tournament team last year, and a 73-62 win over Morehouse. Hamilton scored in double figures in both games.

“They’re a good team and they’re going to be very good in their league, in my opinion,” Georgia coach Mike White said afterward. “Their crowd was great. They should have a big home-court advantage here.”

The schedule isn’t as daunting as last season’s, which included trips to Auburn, Mississippi State and Kentucky, but still includes games at Cincinnati and Arizona State. Auburn was supposed to play at GSU this season but opted to buy out of the return engagement. The Panthers face in-state rivals Mercer and Kennesaw State, both on the road, and continue their series with Jacksonville State.