NEW ORLEANS – D’Marcus Simonds didn’t perform like the Sun Belt Conference men’s basketball player of the year in Georgia State’s league tournament semifinal against rival Georgia Southern.
He had six points and five turnovers in 28 minutes before fouling out of the Panthers’ victory Saturday. But Simonds was back in form Sunday, scoring 27 points as second-seeded Georgia State defeated fourth-seeded Texas-Arlington 74-61 to win the Sun Belt championship and secure an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
The Panthers (24-10), whose most recent NCAA berth before this year came in 2015, made the big bracket for the fourth time overall.
Simonds, who set the Panthers’ single-season scoring record in an otherwise poor performance Saturday, was chosen the tournament’s MVP.
“He played probably the worst game of his life yesterday,” Georgia State coach Ron Hunter said. “I didn’t say anything to him. I knew he would come back and dominate.”