CONWAY, S.C. – Appalachian State trimmed an 18-point second half deficit to as little as six points, but the Mountaineers came up on the short end of a 104-98 contest to Iowa State on Thursday evening in the first game of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at Myrtle Beach.
Iowa State (1-2) turned a four-point halftime lead into an 18-point edge at 79-61 with 8:25 to go, before the Mountaineers (2-1) used a 16-6 run to pull within eight points at 85-77 with 3:12 to play.
Iowa State would push their lead back to 10 points, before a pair of free throws from junior
Ronshad Shabazz (Raleigh, N.C./Huntington Prep) brought App State back to within eight points at 87-79.
The Black and Gold continued to battle and got to within six points in the final seconds, but could get no closer.
Freshman
Justin Forrest (Decatur, Ga./Greenforest McCalep Christian Academy) scored a career-high 32 points off the bench. Forrest scored 26 points in the second half, which is a new Puerto Rico Tip-Off record for points in a half, on 6-of-10 shooting (60.0 percent) from the field, 3-of-6 (50.0 percent) from beyond the arc and 9-of-10 (90.0 percent) shooting from the free throw line.
Shabazz finished with a season-high 32 points, to go along with three rebounds. He scored 21 points in the first half, which was just three points shy of tying his career-high of 24 points in a half, set last season against Georgia Southern. Shabazz has now scored 24 or more points in all three of Appalachian State's contests this season.
Sophomore
Isaac Johnson (Charlotte, N.C./Providence Day) had a nice all-around game with a season-high eight points, six rebounds and a career-high five assists.
Both teams came out of the gate strong and a 3-pointer by Forrest gave the Apps their first lead at 19-18 midway through the first half.
The lead would change hands seven more time in the first half, before a late 6-1 spurt by Iowa State allowed them to open a 47-40 edge. Shabazz would drain a late 3-pointer in the closing second of the opening stanza to trim the Cyclone lead to 47-43 at the intermission.
The second half started out tight, with App State tying the score at 49-49 early on. The Cyclones would then slowly pull away, ultimately building their 18-point lead.
Appalachian finished the contest with 20 assists and also saw their bench hold a 53-23 scoring advantage.
App State will take on Western Michigan in their second game at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at Myrtle Beach. Tip is set for 5 p.m. on ESPNU.
