Men's Basketball Concludes Road Trip at Texas State

SAN MARCOS, Tex. -- App State men's basketball concludes its two game road trip at Texas State, in a battle between the top two defensive teams in the Sun Belt, on Saturday at 5 p.m. EST. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be heard on the Appalachian Sports Network from Learfield IMG College.

THE SERIES

• This will is the 12th meeting between the two schools, with Texas State leading 6-5
• The Bobcats swept the season series last season, winning 70-69 in Boone and 74-71 in San Marcos

SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS

• App State dropped a 66-56 contest to UT Arlington on Thursday evening to fall to 9-8 on the season and 3-3 in Sun Belt play
• Kendall Lewis tallied his second double-double of the season with a career-high 17 points on a career-best eight made field goals, to go along with a career-high tying 10 rebounds. Justin Forrest reached double figures for the 11th consecutive game with 15 points and a game-high five assists, while James Lewis Jr. tied his App State career-best with 10 points
• The Black and Gold are limiting opponents to 64.9 points, which sits second in the Sun Belt
• App State is one of just three teams in the conference to have a positive rebounding margin at +0.9, which is third in the league
• Forrest is averaging 21.3 points in six conference games, which is tops in the Sun Belt

SCOUTING THE BOBCATS

• Texas State outscored Coastal Carolina 44-23 in the second half, on its way to a 78-66 win on Thursday evening to improve to 9-8 overall and 2-4 in conference play
• Nijal Pearson finished with a game-high 29 points, while adding four rebounds, five assists and four steals. Isiah Small had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Marlin Davis and Caleb Asberry each poured in 14 points off the bench
• The Bobcats are surrendering 64.9 points, which leads the Sun Belt
• Pearson leads the Sun Belt in scoring at 19.6 points, while Mason Harrell is 86.5 percent from the free throw line, which leads the league

UP NEXT
App State will returns to the High Country for a pair of games next week. The Mountaineers will host Arkansas State on Thursday evening at 7 p.m., followed by a 4:30 p.m. meeting with Little Rock on Jan. 18. Season tickets and single game tickets for the 2019-20 season are on sale and can be purchased by calling the App State ticket office at 828-262-2079.