HUNTINGTON, W. VA. - After capping off a 5-1 December with a victory in Norfolk over Old Dominion on Wednesday, the App State men's basketball team (9-6, 2-1 SBC) will open 2026 with a road matchup at Marshall (9-5, 1-1 SBC) on Saturday. The contest with the Thundering Herd will mark the halfway point of App State's season-long four-game road trip. Tip off from the Cam Henderson Center is slated for 4 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
App State is set to play its first game of the new year on Saturday after posting its first win on New Year's Eve since 2017 on Wednesday. In the
Dustin Kerns era, the Mountaineers are 3-3 in their first game after the calendar flips to a new year, posting wins in 2023-24 (Jan. 4 against South Alabama), 2022-23 (Jan. 5 vs. Coastal Carolina) and 2021-22 (Jan. 1 against ULM).
With a win on Saturday against Marshall, App State would start its league schedule with a 3-1 record for the third time in the Kerns era (2019-20 and 2023-24). App State's win on Wednesday marked the fifth time since 2019 that it has started 2-1 or better. App State enters Saturday as one of six teams with at least two wins in Sun Belt play.
Saturday's game will open App State's January schedule. The team will play nine games in January, tied for the most games in a single month this season (also played nine in November). Under Kerns, the Mountaineers have been great in January, as they own a 37-16 record since 2019 in January (69.8 percent winning percentage). Kerns' 37 wins in his App State career in January mark his most in a month in his career, and are nine clear of his next-highest tally (28 in November).
The Matchup
- Who: App State at Marshall
- Where: Cam Henderson Center // Huntington, W. Va.
- When: Saturday, Jan. 3 // 4 p.m.
Tune In
- Watch: Watch (ESPN+) | Mark Martin (PxP), Stevie Browning (Color)
- Listen: FLAGSHIP 97.3 (North Wilkesboro), 950 AM/92.7 FM (Greensboro), 790 AM/93.7 FM (Johnson City) | Matt Present (PxP)
- Live Stats: appstatesports.com
Last Time Out
App State's final contest of 2025 saw it open up a double-digit lead early in the first half, which helped lead to a convincing 81-73 road Sun Belt win over Old Dominion on New Year's Eve at Chartway Arena. The Mountaineers scored the game's first points and never looked back as they led for 38 minutes in the game, marking their fifth wire-to-wire win this season.
App State was dominant down low against Old Dominion, posting 46 points in the paint and 20 second-chance points on 13 offensive rebounds. The Mountaineers won the rebound battle by 15 (43-28), and outhustled the Monarchs to several loose balls, specifically in the first half, as 12 of the 20 second-chance points came in the second half.
Five different players found double figures in the points column against the Monarchs in
Jalen Tot,
Luke Wilson,
Alonzo Dodd,
Kasen Jennings, and
Michael Marcus Jr. Marcus Jr. provided a big game in his career-best 32 minutes as he recorded a career-best 20 points and 10 rebounds, giving him his second double-double of the season. The Indian Trail, N.C., native was especially strong in the second half as 18 of his 20 points came in the final frame.
Scouting the Mountaineers
App State enters play on Saturday with a 9-6 record and has won five of its last six games, which include three by double digits. App State owns a 2-1 record in Sun Belt play, which places it in a tie for fourth place in the league standings. The Mountaineers will look to start Sun Belt play with a 3-1 record or better for the third time in the Kerns era with a win over Marshall on Saturday.
The Mountaineers will play their seventh road game of the season when the ball tips off in Huntington on Saturday. App State is 3-4 away from home this season, posting wins over Dartmouth on Nov. 16, ECU on Dec. 11 and Old Dominion on Dec. 31. App State enters Saturday having won back-to-back road games for the first time this season. When App State goes on the road, it relies heavily on its defense to win, as it is allowing 68 points a game in its road wins this season, and has kept its opponents to 60 or fewer points seven times on the road since the start of last season, which includes one instance this year (ECU on Dec. 11).
The Mountaineers enter Saturday's game as winners of five of their last six games due largely in part to their strong rebounding, as they have compiled at least 40 rebounds in five of their last six contests. Entering Saturday, App State is averaging 47.3 rebounds per game over its last six games and has outrebounded its opponents in every game except against Georgia State during this stretch. Winning the rebound battle has been important if the Mountaineers want to win, as they are 7-0 this season when outrebounding their opponent.
Three players enter Saturday's game vs. Marshall averaging at least 10 points in Jennings (15.0), Dodd (12.2) and Wilson (10.1). The trio each scored at least 19 points in the win over High Point on Dec. 14, which marked the second time this season that three Mountaineers eclipsed 19 points in the same game (
Andrin Njock, Marcus Jr. and
Jacari Brim vs. Virginia-Lynchburg). All three players have posted back-to-back games with at least 10 points, while both Jennings and Dodd tallied at least 19 points in App State's win over Coastal Carolina on Dec. 18.
Scouting the Thundering Herd
Marshall, which enters play on Saturday with a 9-5 record, is the third-highest ranked team in the Sun Belt Conference according to the NCAA NET Rankings, standing at 145th as of Jan. 1's rankings. The Thundering Herd head into Saturday's contest on a two-game winning streak, posting wins over West Virginia Tech (Dec. 23) and Georgia State (Dec. 31).
The Thundering Herd plays at one of the fastest paces in the country entering Saturday, owning the 40th-lowest average possession length tally in the country. According to KenPom, Marshall gets a shot off just 15.6 seconds into the shot clock on each possession. This has led to it scoring 13.2 fast-break points per game, which ranks third in the Sun Belt entering Saturday.
On defense, Marshall is one of the best shot-blocking teams in the country, as it enters Saturday as the 14th-ranked team nationally in blocks per game at 5.6 per contest. Matt Van Komen has blocked 40 shots in this season, which is the fifth-highest tally in the country entering Saturday. Van Komen and Wyatt Fricks each sit in the top 10 in the Sun Belt in blocks as of Saturday.
Series History
The Mountaineers and Thundering Herd are slated to meet for the first time this season in what is the first of two matchups between the two teams this year (the other matchup will take place on Feb. 19 in Boone). Saturday's contest in Huntington will mark the 57th all-time meeting between the two teams.
Marshall owns the advantage in the series at 36-20, which includes a season sweep over App State last season.
App State and Marshall have met six previous times in Huntington since 1997, with each winning three apiece at the Cam Henderson Center. Since 2005, the series has been tight, with Marshall holding a slight lead at 5-4.
Next Up
A rematch with the Georgia State Panthers awaits App State after Saturday's game, with the second meeting between the two teams coming in Atlanta. Tip off at the GSU Convocation Center on Thursday is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
