LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Junior
Ronshad Shabazz (Raleigh, N.C./Huntington Prep) and freshman
Justin Forrest (Decatur, Ga./Greenforest McCalep Christian Academy) each scored 18 points as the Appalachian State men's basketball team topped Little Rock 69-67 on Saturday evening.
Shabazz has now reached double figures in 27 of the Mountaineers (13-17, 8-9 SBC) 30 games this season.
Forrest went 7-of-11 (63.6 percent) from the field. He also had three rebounds and four assists.
Senior
Griffin Kinney (Delaware, Ohio/Fork Union Military Academy) had nine points and seven rebounds and
Tyrell Johnson (Atlanta, Ga./Stephenson) also had nine points.
With the score tied at 10-10 early on, the Black and Gold got back-to-back threes from Shabazz and
Tyrell Johnson to open a 16-10 advantage.
App State would expand its lead to eight points at 30-22, only to see the Trojans (6-23, 3-13 SBC) counter with a 9-0 spurt to take a 31-30 with just over three minutes remaining in the first half. The teams would enter halftime tied at 33-33.
The second half was tight before five straight points by the Black and Gold allowed them to open a 55-49 lead with 6:33 remaining. The Trojans would storm back and knotted the game at 57-57 with 3:49 to play.
Following a Shabazz free throw, Little Rock took the lead on a basket by K.J. Gilmore with 3:19 to go.
The Mountaineers would retake the lead at 61-59 on a three-pointer by Forrest, only to see the Trojans answer right back with a trey of their own.
Kinney would then put the Black and Gold in front 63-62 with 1:31 to go on a jump hook in the post. The Mountaineers would get a key stop and Forrest weaved through the Trojan defense for a layup to put the Apps in front 65-62 with 30 seconds to play.
Little Rock would look for the quick two and Gilmore drove to the hoop, but was rejected by
Tyrell Johnson. Senior
Craig Hinton (Winston-Salem, N.C./East Forsyth) grabbed the loose ball and was fouled. He drained both free throws with 18.6 seconds to play to give the Mountaineers a 67-62 lead.
The Trojans would get a layup with 10.9 seconds and Shabazz was fouled on the ensuing inbound with 5.9 seconds to play. He stepped to the line and drained both freebies to give the Black and Gold a five-point lead and put the game out of reach.
App State shot 23-of-47 (48.9 percent) from the field, while the Trojans went 25-of-52 (48.1 percent).
The Black and Gold forced Little Rock in to 16 turnovers, scoring 19 points off of the miscues.
Appalachian State will close out the regular season on March 3 against Coastal Carolina inside the Holmes Center. The Mountaineers will also celebrate Senior Day before the tip. Appalachian State basketball single game tickets can be purchased online by clicking
here, by phone at
(828) 262-2079 or in person at the Appalachian State athletics ticket office, located at the Holmes Center (Monday - Friday; 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.).
