ORANGEBURG, S.C. – Four players reached double figures and 10 scored as App State men's basketball posted a dominant 81-61 victory at South Carolina State in its season opener on Wednesday.
The 20-point road win marks the largest season opening road victory for the Mountaineers (1-0) since the 1966-67 season opener. In addition, it marks the Black and Gold's third victory by 20 points or more under head coach
Dustin Kerns.
Donovan Gregory paced the balanced App State attack with a career-high 14 points on 5-of-7 (71.4 percent) shooting, four rebounds and three steals.
Adrian Delph added 13 points, three rebounds and a pair of assists.
RJ Duhart added 12 points on 5-of-6 (83.3 percent) shooting and six rebounds off the bench.
Kendall Lewis added 11 points and five rebounds, while
Justin Forrest had nine points and a team-high tying seven rebounds.
CJ Huntley had six points and six rebounds off the bench, while
James Lewis Jr. tallied six points and five rebounds in a reserve role.
Trailing 11-10 early, App State used an 8-0 run to jump front 18-11. Following a Bulldog (0-1) basket, the Mountaineers scored the next four points to extend its lead to 23-13 with just over 10 minutes left in the half.
South Carolina State pulled with seven at 25-18, only to see the Black and Gold respond with 10 straight points to open a 35-18 advantage. A three-pointer by Delph late in the half gave App State a 47-20 lead at the break.
The Mountaineers scored seven of the first nine points of the second half to open their largest lead of the contest at 54-22. South Carolina State chipped away at the lead and pulled to within 23 points at 64-41 with just over 11 minutes remaining. App State came right back with a 7-0 run to push its lead back to 71-41 and never looked back.
App State shot 51.6 percent (32-of-62) from the field and went 10-of-13 (76.9 percent) from the free throw line. The Bulldogs shot just 30.0 percent (24-of-80) from the field and 21.9 percent (7-of-32) from beyond the arc.
The Mountaineers won the rebounding battle 59-34 and outscored South Carolina State 50-28 in the paint.
The Mountaineers return to action on Friday, hosting Carver in their home opener at 6 p.m. on ESPN+. App State would like to thank the Law Offices of Timothy Welborn as its 2020-21 season sponsor.
