HARRISONBURG, Va. – After posting a 25-point road win over Coastal Carolina on Thursday, marking the Mountaineers' second-largest road win against a Sun Belt opponent, App State (12-4, 3-1 SBC) concludes its season-high four-game road trip in Harrisonburg, Va., where they will meet the James Madison Dukes (15-1, 3-1 SBC) in a highly anticipated matchup between the two teams with the best records in the Sun Belt. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.
App State is off to one of its best starts in program history as the Mountaineers have started the season winning 12 of their first 16 games, marking the best 16-game start to a season since the 2006-07 team won 12 of its first 16 contests. The Mountaineers' 12-4 start matches the best 16-game start to a season since the turn of the 21st century.
Additionally, App State enters Harrisonburg having won 11 of its last 13 games, which is the best 13-game stretch since 2009-10 when Buzz Peterson's squad won 11 of 13 games. The Mountaineers' current 13-game stretch is tied for the second-best stretch since 2000.
With a win on Saturday against the Dukes, the Mountaineers will be 4-1 in the Sun Belt and 3-1 in conference road games to begin the year. App State has never started Sun Belt play 4-1 and hasn't won four of their first five conference games since 2006-07. Additionally, the Mountaineers have won three of their first four conference road games just twice since 2009-10.
The Matchup
- Who: App State at James Madison (RV)
- Where: Atlantic Union Bank Center // Harrisonburg, Va.
- When: Saturday, January 13 // 4 p.m.
Tune In
- Watch: ESPN+
- Listen: 97.3 WKBC, 96.5/1450 WATA, 790/93.7 WETB, 1250/103.9 WBRM
- Live Stats: appstatesports.com
Last Time Out
App State throttled Coastal Carolina in their last contest, winning 70-45, marking the fifth-largest margin of victory over a current Sun Belt foe and the second-largest margin of victory against a Sun Belt foe on the road.
The Mountaineer defense allowed just 45 points, which is the second-fewest points the Black and Gold have given up against a Sun Belt opponent. App State moved to 15-0 under Coach Kerns when they allow less than 50 points in a game.
11 Mountaineers found the basket against the Chanticleers, marking the 10th game this season that at least nine Mountaineers have scored a basket. Three players reached double-figures, highlighted by
Tre'Von Spillers' eighth-straight game reaching double-digits.
Scouting the Mountaineers
The Mountaineers enter play against James Madison at 12-4 and have won 11 of their last 13 games. App State is one of just three teams in the Sun Belt Conference with at least 10 wins coming into play on Saturday.
App State's complementary style of play has led to 10 double-digit wins and six wins by at least 20 points this season. Both numbers lead the Sun Belt. Because of this, the Mountaineers enter play against the Dukes with the second-best scoring margin in the Sun Belt and the 30th-best in the country at 14.2. App State pairs the lowest-scoring defense in the conference with the fifth-highest scoring offense to get to that number.
Offensively, the Mountaineers boast a deep team that takes care of the basketball and scores at an efficient clip. Entering play against James Madison, App State owns the top assist/turnover ratio in the conference at 1.54, turning the ball over at the lowest clip in the Sun Belt while dishing out the third-most assists. Additionally, the Black and Gold sees six players score at least seven points a night while the bench unit has played a large role in the offensive production, as the second unit averages the 25th-most points a game in the country.
Defensively, the Black & Gold play stifling defense and block shots at one of the best rates in the country. Entering play on Saturday, App State boasts the third-best blocks per game average in the NCAA, blocking a shot on an astounding 14.8 percent of its defensive possessions, according to KenPom. Two of the five best shot blockers in the Sun Belt reside in the App State front court in
Justin Abson and
Tre'Von Spillers. Abson ranks sixth in the country in blocks (42) and sits seventh in blocks per game (2.6).
Scouting the Dukes
James Madison is 15-1 this season and enters Saturday's contest tied with three other teams for the best winning percentage in the country. The Dukes were one of the last three unbeaten teams in NCAA Division I before losing last Saturday to Southern Miss.
Because of the Dukes' undefeated start, which included a road win over the then-No. 4 Michigan State Spartans to open the season, head coach Mark Byington's squad jumped into the AP Poll and remained there for eight consecutive weeks before falling out after last Saturday's loss. Currently, the Dukes come into Saturday's matchup with App State as the 28th-ranked team in the AP Poll, receiving 98 votes.
The Dukes are one of the highest-scoring offenses in the country as they average 88.8 points a game, good for the fourth-highest mark in Division I. Terence Edwards and T.J. Bickerstaff combine to average 32.3 points a game to lead the high-powered Duke offense, while three others average at least nine points a game.
Series History
Saturday's contest will be the ninth meeting between App State and James Madison with the Mountaineers holding a 5-3 edge in the series. The two teams split the season series last year with each team winning on the road. Five of the eight contests between the Mountaineers and Dukes have been decided by fewer than 10 points.
The last time the two teams met came last February at the Holmes Center, which saw the Dukes pick up a six-point road win. Despite the loss,
Donovan Gregory made history that night, becoming the 35th Mountaineer in program history to reach 1,000 career points after tallying a 21-point night.
Terence Harcum and
Xavion Brown also had big nights last season against the Dukes, each scoring in double-figures.
Coach Kerns is 1-1 against James Madison in his career but has faced Duke head coach Mark Byington four times as a head coach. Kerns is 3-1 against Byington.
Next Up
App State will return home for the first time since the calendar flipped to 2024 after play concludes on Saturday, welcoming the Georgia State Panthers to the Holmes Center on Wednesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.
