JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State men's basketball team got its preparations for the 2010-11 season underway on Friday evening, when the Gamecocks held their first practice of the season.

The Gamecocks worked in Pete Mathews Coliseum on Friday evening for the first official practice of the preseason and third-year head coach James Green was pleased with the effort he saw in his team's first full workout.

“As always, it's exciting to get out there for the first time and get started at full speed,” Green said. “I was really impressed with the enthusiasm of our guys tonight, especially from the new players. We have a long way to go before the season starts but I really felt like tonight was a good start for us.”

The Gamecocks return six letterwinners from last year's team that advanced to the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament for the first time since 2006 and will mix in a group of 10 newcomers to the program. In that group of returning letterwinners are three starters and three reserves.

Leading the way for the returnees are seniors Nick Murphy and Jeremy Bynum, a couple of players that will leave their mark in the Gamecocks' record book when they hang up their jerseys. Forward Sean Thurston wraps up the senior class for JSU, returning after his first year with the program after transferring from Southern-Shreveport.

Murphy, a 6-foot-4 forward from Bronx, N.Y., enters his senior season just 118 points shy of becoming the school's all-time leading scorer in Division I. Already a member of the school's 1,000-points club, Murphy is also just 32 rebounds shy of becoming the school's Division I leader in that category also.

Bynum, a 6-foot-3 guard from Oxford, Ala., is the school's Division I leader in career 3-pointers made with 166 and is 169 points away from joining Murphy in the Gamecocks' 1,000-points club. Also back is junior forward Stephen Hall, a 6-foot-6 native of Birmingham that was third on the team in rebounding and fourth in scoring a year ago.

Junior Dominique Shellman returns in the JSU back court after averaging 5.1 points and 4.4 assists per game in his first season at JSU a year ago.

Green will have to look to a group of 10 newcomers to fill the holes on his 2010-11 squad, one that will feature six freshman and four junior college transfers. Guard B.J. Miller highlights the JUCO class after sitting out last year in Jacksonville after transferring from Georgia Perimeter College.

The Gamecocks will take the floor for the first time on Nov. 4, when they host West Georgia in an exhibition game at Pete Mathews Coliseum at 7 p.m. Admission will be free for the exhibition, while fans will be able to attend the Nov. 13 season opener against West Alabama with a ticket stub from that afternoon's JSU football game vs. Southeast Missouri.

Season tickets are available at the JSU Athletics Ticket Office on the first floor of Kennamer Hall or by phone at (256) 782-8499 and 1-877-JSU-TIXX.