ETSU shoots past former SoCon rival Georgia Southern, 79-59

Dec 23, 2017, 02:29 am

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. -- Devontavius Payne scored 15 points and Peter Jurkin and Jalan McCloud each contributed 14 as East Tennessee State pulled away in the second half against Georgia Southern for a 79-59 victory Friday night.

It was the first meeting between the former rivals and first since the 2004-05 season, the Eagles' final season in the Southern Conference before moving to the Sun Belt.

ETSU (8-4), which now has won six of its last seven, shot 29-for-30 from the floor (48.3 percent) and 9 of 21 from long range, used a solid, 41-30 advantage on the boards to control the game. Payne led the way, hitting 4 of 8 from the field, 4 of 7 from behind the three-point arc. McCloud contributed six rebounds and five assists off the ETSU bench.

Tookie Brown had 24 points to lead Georgia Southern (9-4).