Men's Basketball Plays First of Four Straight Road Games on Monday at Western Carolina

CULLOWHEE, N.C. -- Appalachian State men's basketball will begin a season long four game road trip on Monday evening at Western Carolina at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3.

THE SERIES

• These two rivals will meet for the 189th time overall, with the Black and Gold holding a 116-72 edge in the series.
• Western Carolina has won two of the last three meetings, including a 58-53 triumph in Boone last season.

LAST TIME OUT

• Appalachian State cruised to a 84-61 victory in the Holmes Center on Saturday evening.
• Junior Ronshad Shabazz tallied 21 points, a season-high tying five assists and two steals to lead the Mountaineers.
• Freshman Justin Forrest added 19 points, including a perfect 6-of-6 mark from the free throw line, a career-high five assists and two steals.
• Junior Tyrell Johnson added 13 points (11 in the second half) on 6-of-8 shooting and three rebounds (all offensive).
• Appalachian State shot 51.6 percent (33-of-64) from the field and also knocked down a season-best 10-of-11 (90.9 percent) free throw attempts.

SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS

• Appalachian State stands at 5-4 on the season and is a perfect 4-0 in games played at the Holmes Center.
• Shabazz leads the team in scoring at 22.0 ppg. His scoring average ranks 24th in the nation and second in the Sun Belt. In addition, Shabazz now has a team-high 31 assists on the season.
• Forrest ranks second on the team in scoring at 17.1 ppg. He has drained 26 three-pointers this season, which is 26th in the country and second in the conference.
• Senior Griffin Kinney is averaging 9.4 points and 5.2 rebounds, while shooting a career-best 60.3 percent from the field.
• The Apps continue to make their mark felt in numerous categories, ranking in the top-10 nationally in numerous categories. The Mountaineers currently rank second in free throw attempts (255), third in rebounds (410), fourth in rebounds per game (45.56), fifth in defensive rebounds per game (31.67), ninth in total three-point field goals (96) and ninth in free throws made (168).

SCOUTING THE CATAMOUNTS

• Western Carolina enters with a 2-6 overall record after falling 69-60 at the College of Charleston on Thursday.
• Mike Amius had 22 points on 6-of-8 (75.0 percent) to go along with seven rebounds. Deriece Parks added 16 points and Marc Gosselin posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
• Matt Halvorsen leads the team in scoring at 11.4 ppg. He is also shooting a team-best 75.0 percent (15-of-20) from the free throw line.
• Marc Gosselin is averaging a team-high 5.6 rpg and is also shooting a team best 50.9 percent (27-of-53) from the field.

NEXT UP

• The Apps will play again on Saturday, traveling to take on Akron in a non-conference matchup at 2 p.m.