Georgia State men’s basketball coach Ron Hunter watched his team defeat Fort Valley State 94-38 on Monday in his team’s final exhibition game.
Instead of being happy after his team shot 55.6 percent, while limiting the Wildcats to 20.6 percent shooting, Hunter was aggravated about most everything.
He wasn’t happy with how his guards rebounded. He wasn’t happy that his team was picked to finish fourth in the Sun Belt Conference last week. Hunter knows what this team has the potential to do. Now, he needs to make sure that the Panthers don’t let predictions of an NCAA tournament appearance cause them not to fulfill their potential.
“When you are a talented group, sometimes you just let your talent play,” he said. “We have to play with a sense of passion and energy.”
The Panthers, who will open the regular season on Saturday against Southern Poly, seemed to do that on Monday against the outmatched Wildcats. Georgia State won the “hustle” categories, outrebounding Fort Valley State 46-35, dishing 18 assists, blocking 12 shots and scoring 26 points in the paint. Ryan Harrow led Georgia State with 19 points, followed by Devonta White and Rashaad Richardson (12 each). Eleven Panthers scored.
Still, Hunter was growling in the press conference.
“We got through the exhibition season,” he said in his initial assessment of the game.
The Panthers used a 15-0 run in the first half to open up a 19-5 lead and put away the game. The run featured two strong moves inside by sophomore forward T.J. Shipes, followed by back-to-back baskets by Harrow.
But it was hard to tell if the Panthers were playing well or if Fort Valley, which went 8-18 last year, was having an off night.
The Wildcats missed all 11 of their 3-point attempts in the first half and airballed two free throws on their way to shooting 26.7 percent.
Georgia State took advantage to hit six of its 12 3-pointers as part of 68-percent shooting in the first half.
The Panthers didn’t slow down in the second half. They hit four consecutive 3-pointers, three by Harrow, to open up a 66-20 lead.
Fort Valley’s frustration erupted with 5:44 left when Ralph Wilson intentionally elbowed Denny Burguillos in the face as the two began to move up the court. Wilson looked over his shoulder to find Burguillos before slamming his left elbow into Burguillos’ left cheek.
Wilson, who was whistled for an intentional foul on Devonta White in the first half, was ejected. Burguillos stayed down for a few minutes before making his way to the bench. Doctors examined Burguillos and said he didn’t receive a concussion.
R.J. Hunter said that Wilson was “trippin’” all game, throwing elbows and hard screens.
“We don’t need that in college basketball,” Ron Hunter said.
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