LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Appalachian State men's basketball will conclude its three-game road trip on Saturday at 4 p.m. EST against Little Rock. The contest can be seen on ESPN+ and can be heard across the Appalachian IMG Sports Network.
SUITS AND SNEAKERS WEEK
- Coaches vs. Cancer Suits And Sneakers Week is a nationwide event when basketball coaches across the country unite for a common cause – saving lives from cancer.
- Coaches and their staff across the nation wear sneakers with their suits during games to raise awareness and help save lives from cancer by raising funds and encouraging people to educate themselves about cancer prevention, screening, and early detection.
THE SERIES
- This will be the 12th all-time meeting between the two schools, with the Trojans holding a slim 6-5 lead.
- App State emerged victorious in all three contests last season, posting a 72-67 overtime win a Boone, a 69-67 win in Little Rock and a 93-64 victory in the First Round of the Sun Belt Tournament.
LAST TIME OUT
- The Black and Gold dropped an 82-81 overtime decision at Arkansas State on Thursday evening.
- Justin Forrest drained a season-high six three-pointers to finish with a team-high 24 points. He added four assists.
- Ronshad Shabazz added 22 points and a season-high tying six rebounds.
- Off the bench, Tyrell Johnson tallied 13 points and five rebounds, while Bennett Holley had eight points and a career-high nine rebounds.
- App State built an 18-point first half lead, only to see Arkansas State rally to take a six-point lead late in the second half. Ronshad Shabazz drained a pair of three-pointers to tie the game at 70-70 and send the contest into overtime. Isaac Johnson gave the Mountaineers an 79-78 lead in the extra session, only to see Arkansas State get the lead back on an intentional foul. App State had multiple looks to win the game, but came up empty, allowing the Red Wolves to escape with the one-point win.
SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS
- Appalachian State stands at 5-14 and 0-6 in Sun Belt play.
- The Black and Gold drained 11 three-pointers in Thursday's contest at Little Rock and have now made double digit threes in eight games this season.
- Tyrell Johnson has reached double figures in the scoring department in three of his last four games and is averaging 11.3 points and 4.8 rebounds during that span.
- Isaac Johnson has recorded eight or more rebounds in four consecutive games and leads the league in rebounding, averaging 8.8 rpg.
- Justin Forrest has registered double figures in five of his last six games, including two 20 or more scoring outputs, and is averaging 14.7 points during that span.
SCOUTING THE TROJANS
- Little Rock fell 72-71 at home to Coastal Carolina on Thursday evening to drop to 7-13 on the season and 2-5 in Sun Belt play.
- Rayjon Tucker paced the Trojans with a game-high 29 points. Off the bench, Deondre Burns had 11 points, while Markquis Nowell and Kris Bankston each tallied 10 points.
- Tucker leads the team and ranks fifth in the Sun Belt in scoring, averaging 20.2 points...Tucker is also shooting a team-best 50.9 percent from the field, which ranks fifth in the Sun Belt.
- As a team, Little Rock is shooting 49.3 percent from the field, which sits second in the conference.
UP NEXT
The Mountaineers will return to Boone for a pair of contests next weekend. The Mountaineers will welcome Louisiana to the Holmes Center on Thursday evening at 7 p.m. and ULM on Feb. 1 at 2 p.m. Both contests will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be heard across the Appalachian IMG Sports Network.
