After losing to Troy on their home floor late in the season, the Panthers weren’t going to be outdone again.

Georgia State easily defeated Troy 73-51 on Friday night in the quarterfinals of the Sun Belt Conference tournament. The Panthers advanced to the semifinals, where they will face the winner of Georgia Southern-Louisiana-Monroe to be played Friday night.

Jeff Thomas led the Panthers with 19 points, while leading-scorer D’Marcus Simonds contributed 17. Georgia State shot 51 percent against Troy’s 31 percent.

The tournament is being played at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans.

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