CONWAY, S.C. – The Coastal Carolina University men's basketball team will be back on the road as the Chanticleers make a road trip into neighboring Georgia for their next two road games.
 
The Chants will open their road action in Statesboro, Ga., when the Chants will play at Georgia Southern University on Thursday, Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. ET. CCU will end the road trip in Atlanta at Georgia State, Saturday, Jan. 22, at 2 p.m. ET.
 
ABOUT COASTAL
 
The Chanticleers are entering the weekend with a 9-8 overall record and are 1-4 in Sun Belt Conference action. The Chants have lost three consecutive games but will have a tough challenge ahead in trying to break that losing streak this week on the road as the road has not been kind to CCU this season. They are 0-4 on the road and still looking for their first true road win of the season.
 
Essam Mostafa is coming off a sub-par performance for the double-double machine with just six points and seven rebounds in Saturday's loss to Appalachian State. He continues to lead CCU in scoring at 15.5 points per game and is also one of the top double-double players in all of college basketball as he has nine on the season, matching his total from all of last year. His nine double-doubles are second in the Sun Belt and ninth in the nation.
 
Vince Cole is the hottest scoring player for the Chants heading into the road games this weekend. He has poured in double-digit points for eight consecutive games and has scored 20 or more points in each of the past three games. Over the last eight games, Cole is averaging 18.8 points per game.
 
Rudi Williams got back on track with his scoring, finishing with 19 points against Appalachian State in Saturday's action. He was coming off a two-game swing where he only managed to score six total points. Junior Ebrima Dibba hit a milestone in the second half of Saturday's contest when he picked up his ninth assist of the game, which turned out to be career-assist No. 400. He became only the seventh player in CCU men's basketball history to record 400 career assists.
 
COASTAL vs. GEORGIA SOUTHERN HISTORY
 
Thursday's game with the Eagles will be the 14th game in the series with the Chants holding a slim 7-6 edge over Georgia Southern.
 
The series began in 1995 with the Chants picking up wins in the first four games between the two teams. The run continued as CCU won five of the first six games. When the Chants entered the Sun Belt, Georgia Southern ran a string of four consecutive wins and has won five of the past seven games in the series. The Chants did win two of the three games between the two teams last season.
 
While Georgia Southern is 10th in the Sun Belt in scoring at 70.4 points per game, the Eagles have one of the top-scoring defenses in the conference allowing only 63.6 points per game, which is tied for second.
 
Elijah McCadden is the Eagles' top scorer, as he is averaging 12.5 points per game. Other double-digit scorers are Andrei Savrasov at 11.7 points per game and Kamari Brown at 10.2.
 
COASTAL vs. GEORGIA STATE HISTORY
 
In another series that is relatively young, Saturday's action at Georgia State will only be the 12th meeting between the programs, with CCU holding a slim 6-5 edge.
 
The series started in 2007 with CCU winning that game 79-68 at home before winning the 2008 road affair 69-52. Since CCU joined the Sun Belt for the 2016-17 season, Georgia State has a 5-4 lead in the series and has won the last two meetings.
 
Georgia State enters the week 6-7 overall and 0-2 in Sun Belt play, as COVID-19 has cut into the Panthers' schedule. Like the Chanticleers, they have also lost three consecutive games, including an overtime loss at Georgia Tech in non-conference action.
 
Returning starter Corey Allen leads the Panthers' offense, scoring 15.3 points per game. Justin Roberts is averaging 12.9 while Kane Williams is chipping in with 12.5 per outing.
 
The Panthers have two other double-digit scorers in their balanced scoring attack. Nelson Phillips is averaging 10.3 points per game and Eliel 10.0 points per game.
 
Both games can be heard on WRNN 99.5 Hot Talk and watched live on ESPN+. Links for both along with live stats can be found at www.GoCCUSports.com.
 
For complete coverage of CCU men's basketball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalMBB (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram) or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUSports.com.