PENSACOLA, Fla. — No. 3 seed Coastal Carolina will open the 2026 Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Championship on Saturday night (9 p.m. ET/ESPN+), facing No. 10 seed Georgia Southern in the quarterfinals at the Pensacola Bay Center

The Chanticleers (19-12, 11-7 Sun Belt) finished in a six-way tie for second place in the league standings and earned the No. 3 seed through tiebreakers, marking the program's highest conference finish and seed since joining the Sun Belt.

Coastal enters the postseason rested after eight days between games following a dramatic 69-68 win at James Madison in the regular-season finale. Joshua Beadle scored 28 points and knocked down the game-winning jumper with 0.9 seconds remaining to secure the Chanticleers' first victory over the Dukes.

The match-up with Georgia Southern marks the third meeting between the teams this season after splitting the regular-season series. Both games were decided in overtime with the road team winning each contest. The Eagles claimed an 82-81 victory at the HTC Center on Jan. 1 before Coastal responded with a 79-75 overtime win in Statesboro on Jan. 17 behind a career-high 28 points from Rasheed Jones.

Coastal Trending Up
After opening Sun Belt play 1-4, the Chanticleers closed the regular season with a 10-3 stretch that included a five-game winning streak in January.

Coastal has relied heavily on its veteran backcourt trio of Beadle, AJ Dancler, and Jones. The group averages a combined 48.2 points per game — the highest trio scoring total in the Sun Belt — with all three ranking among the league's top 20 scorers.

The Chanticleers have also thrived in tight games, posting a 14-6 record in contests decided by six points or fewer. Each of Coastal's last nine games has been decided by five points or less, with the Chants going 6-3 in those matchups.

Eagles Survive and Advance
Georgia Southern enters the quarterfinals with momentum after knocking off No. 6 seed South Alabama 94-85 in the second round. The Eagles tied a Sun Belt tournament record with 23 made three-pointers in the win.

Alden Applewhite scored a game-high 34 points on 11-of-12 shooting, including 8-of-9 from beyond the arc, while Tyren Moore added 23 points and nine assists. Georgia Southern has now made 47 three-pointers in three tournament games, setting a new conference tournament record.

What's at Stake
A Coastal Carolina victory would send the Chanticleers to the Sun Belt semifinals for the first time since 2021 and secure the program's first 20-win season since 2016-17.

The Chanticleers are also seeking their first Sun Belt Conference tournament championship and their first league title since winning the Big South Tournament in 2015.