Georgia State Excited for First Live Action of the Season

Georgia State will be opening it’s 2012-13 season with an exibition game against Life University on Monday, Oct. 29.   The game will be held inside the Sports Arena in downtown Atlanta.  Georgia State head coach Ron Hunter is anxious to see what his team will look like this year after a successful 22-win season in 2011-12.

“I am looking forward to this first exhibition game, Hunter told GeorgiaStateSports.com.  “It’s time to face some opposing competition.”

Returning from last season is the Panthers’ leading scorer, Devonta White.  The 5-10 guard led the team 12.9 points per game and played a team-high 34.3 minutes.  Earlier this month, White was named to the All-CAA Preseason Second Team.

Besides White, however, Hunter has some question marks as to the cohesiveness and consistency he will get from his team.  The projected starting lineup includes two transfers, Manny Atkins and Denny Burguillos.  It will also feature two highly touted freshman in R.J. Hunter and Markus Crider.

“One of the things I’m looking forward to seeing the most is how our newcomers interact in real-game situations,” said Hunter.  “They have done nicely in practice adjusting to our system, but at the end of the day we must be able to take what we learn in practice and apply them to game situations.”

Atkins is a 6-7 small forward from Virginia Tech who can pose a threat from the outside as a shooter.  Burguillos–another 6-7 forward–is a transfer from Casper College in Wyoming.  True freshman R.J. Hunter–son of head coach Ron Hunter–led his high school team in Indiana to the state championship game last season.  At 6-5, Hunter averaged 20 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.8 steals in his senior season.  Crider averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds at prep school last year.  The 6-6 wingman is known for his size and ability to score from anywhere.

Life University is a NAIA program located in Marietta, GA.  The two teams have met only once before when Georgia State defeated Life 128-79 in an exhibition game in 2001.  The game can be heard live on WRAS-FM 88.5 and live stats will be charted on GeorgiaStateSports.com.