SAN MARCOS, Texas – The App State Mountaineers (19-4, 10-1 SBC) are set to wrap up their three-game road trip in San Marcos, Texas, battling the Texas State Bobcats in Strahan Arena on Wednesday. App State's trip to San Marcos will mark the Mountaineers' first trip to the state of Texas in over two years. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT) and can be streamed on ESPN+.
The Mountaineers were among the teams receiving votes in this week's AP and USA Today Coaches Poll, marking the second consecutive week that App State has been featured in each poll. App State received votes in last week's AP Poll, which was the first time that App State has received a point in the AP Poll since Nov. 15, 2010. With four points this week, it's the first time the Mountaineers have received multiple voting points since the final AP Poll of the 2006-07 season.
With a road win last Saturday in overtime against Georgia Southern, the Mountaineers extended their current winning streak to eight games, which is the second time this season that App State has posted a winning streak of at least eight games. The Mountaineers are the only team in NCAA Division I this season with multiple winning streaks of at least eight games coming into Wednesday's action while also boasting the nation's sixth-longest active winning streak.
Saturday's win over Georgia Southern also marked the Mountaineers' 10th Sun Belt win this season and the eighth straight win against a Sun Belt opponent. The Mountaineers are one of just six teams in Division I to boast a 10-1 record in conference play and one of just 11 teams in the country with at least 10 conference wins entering Wednesday's action.
The Matchup
- Who: App State (RV) at Texas State
- Where: Strahan Arena // San Marcos, Texas
- When: Wednesday, February 6 // 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT)
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
In a tightly contested, physical game, the Mountaineers battled back from multiple nine-point deficits to earn a gutsy come-from-behind win in overtime at Georgia Southern last Saturday. App State used consecutive 9-0 runs to tie the score in regulation before
Donovan Gregory's contested layup and
Justin Abson's game-sealing block secured the victory.
Four players eclipsed double-figures in Saturday's win, highlighted by a season-high 26 points from
Terence Harcum and a career-high 20 points from Abson. Harcum's 26 points are the most points scored in a game by a Mountaineer this season. It was yet another balanced outing in the win, but when the team needed a bucket, it turned to its fifth-year leader,
Donovan Gregory, who calmly drove into the lane and scored to put App State ahead.
Despite allowing the Eagles to shoot 53 percent from the floor, the defense stepped up when it needed to last Saturday. With the ball at the top of the key and three seconds remaining in the game, Avantae Parker drove into Abson looking for the game-winning bucket, but Abson's block as the final horn sounded secured the hard-fought win.
Scouting the Mountaineers
At 19-4 and 10-1 in Sun Belt play, App State enters Wednesday's battle with Texas State in sole possession of first place in the conference and has won 18 of its last 20 games. The Mountaineers are one of just 12 teams in NCAA Division I with at least 19 wins this season and are one of just 22 teams in the country to boast a winning percentage of at least 80 percent heading into Wednesday's game.
The Mountaineers hang their hat on defense as the team boasts the best scoring defense in the Sun Belt and the 36th-lowest in the nation entering Wednesday's contest, allowing just 65.4 points a game. Coming into play against Texas State, App State ranks in the top 30 in the nation in several defensive categories, including blocks (1st), opponent field-goal percentage (3rd), fouls per game (7th) and three-point field goal defense (28th).
Along with suffocating defense, App State is a tremendous rebounding team. Coming into play on Wednesday, the Mountaineers boast the sixth-highest rebound average in the NCAA, averaging 42.7 boards per contest. Additionally, the Black and Gold secure the defensive glass at a high rate, grabbing 31 defensive rebounds a game, which is the second-best mark in the country. App State has grabbed at least 40 rebounds in 15 games this season and is 15-2 when it outrebounds its opponent.
On the offensive side, App State owns a deep team that shoots the ball efficiently and shares the basketball at a high rate. Entering Saturday's action, the Mountaineers have seen 11 different players score in double-figures in a game this season, which means that 85 percent of the active roster has scored in double-figures in a game this season. At least nine players have recorded a basket in 14 games this season while at least two players have eclipsed double-figures in each of the last 29 games.
Scouting the Bobcats
Texas State enters Wednesday's contest with a 9-14 record this season but has won each of its last two home games against South Alabama and Southern Miss. Overall, the Bobcats are 5-4 at Strahan Arena.
The Bobcats boast one of the better defenses in the Sun Belt Conference as they enter play on Wednesday with the fifth-best scoring defense in the league. Head coach Terrence Johnson's squad has kept each of its last three opponents below 70 points, including keeping Southern Miss 14 points below its season average last Saturday.
Texas State big man Brandon Love is a nightly double-double candidate for the Bobcats and is one of only two players for Texas State to average double-figures. Love has four double-doubles on the season, including one in his last game against Southern Miss, recording 15 points and a season-high 14 rebounds.
Series History
Wednesday's contest marks the 18th meeting between the Mountaineers and Bobcats and the first and only meeting of the season between the two teams. Historically, it has been a close matchup with Texas State holding a slight 9-8 advantage. App State won last year's meeting with Texas State 82-75 in a close battle that saw seven lead changes and eight ties.
In last year's win in Boone,
Donovan Gregory led all scorers with 21 points while also filling the stat sheet with four rebounds, four assists and a steal. Two other current Mountaineers in
CJ Huntley and
Terence Harcum reached double-digits as well.
Coach Kerns is 3-3 against Texas State and head coach Terrence Johnson in his career. Since Kerns took over in 2019, the Mountaineers have never beaten Texas State at Strahan Arena.
Next Up
The Mountaineers welcome the back-to-back-to-back regular season MAC Champion Toledo Rockets to the Holmes Center on Saturday as part of the MAC-SBC Challenge. Saturday's contest against Toledo will be the first meeting between the two teams since the 1999-00 season. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.
