BOONE, N.C. - Capping off its season-long four-game homestand that has spanned eight days, the App State men's basketball team (11-9, 4-4 SBC) will open the Sun Belt West portion of its schedule by welcoming the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns (5-15, 3-5 SBC) to the Holmes Center on Thursday and the ULM Warhawks (3-16, 0-7 SBC) to Boone on Friday. Tip off from the Holmes Center is slated for noon on Thursday and Friday, and both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
App State is set to take a break from its Sun Belt East schedule with five straight games against Sun Belt West schools and a nonconference bout against Eastern Michigan on Feb. 7. During this stretch of five consecutive games against Sun Belt West opponents, the Mountaineers will welcome three teams to Boone (Louisiana - Jan. 22, ULM - Jan. 23 and South Alabama - Feb. 4). This week marks the first time that both Louisiana and ULM will visit the Holmes Center since the 2023-24 season.
The Mountaineers enter this weekend's games with a 22-22 record against teams from Sun Belt West schools in the
Dustin Kerns era. App State went 3-2 against the Sun Belt West last season, defeating Texas State, Southern Miss and ULM, but falling to Troy and Arkansas State.
App State enters this weekend's contests having won 31 of its last 38 games at the Holmes Center since the start of the 2023-24 season. Over the last 38 home games, the Mountaineers have outscored their foes by 15.4 points per game (585 total). App State's 15-point victory over James Madison on Jan. 15 was its fifth win of at least 15 points at home this season, which marks the most 15-point home wins for the Mountaineers since totaling seven in the 2023-24 season.
The Matchup
- Who: App State vs. Louisiana // App State vs. ULM
- Where: Holmes Convocation Center // Boone, N.C.
- When: Thursday, Jan. 22 // Noon | Friday, Jan. 23 // Noon
Tune In
- Watch: Watch (ESPN+) | Corey Hodges (PxP), John Reisterer (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
After digging itself a hole and falling behind by 19 points at halftime, App State's second-half comeback attempt fell just short after a late steal and a half-court heave by
Alonzo Dodd fell off the mark. App State outscored Old Dominion by 17 points in the second half, but ODU's strong opening half helped it to a 75-73 win in Boone on Saturday.
App State struggled to shoot the ball from deep on Saturday, as it made just six 3-pointers on 22 attempts (27.3 percent). On the other end, the Monarchs buried 11 threes at a 47.8 percent rate, which helped them stabilize themselves when App State made a handful of second-half runs.
Despite the result, Dodd provided the home crowd with a career game, as the senior guard totaled a career-best 27 points and nine assists. His nine assists marked his season-best and fell one short of his career high of 10. It was Dodd's third straight 20-point game, after he tallied 21 points at Coastal Carolina on Jan. 10 and 23 against James Madison on Jan. 15.
Scouting the Mountaineers
App State enters play this weekend with an 11-9 record and a 4-4 record in Sun Belt play, which places it in a tie for eighth place in the league standings. App State enters this weekend's games having won seven of its last 11 games, which include four by double digits. The Mountaineers went 1-1 last week to open their homestand, downing James Madison by 15 points last Thursday before falling to Old Dominion by two points on Saturday.
Since the 2023-24 season, which saw the Mountaineers take home the regular-season Sun Belt championship, App State owns a 30-14 record (68.2 percent win percentage) in league games. App State has gotten to that record thanks in large part to stout defense, as it has led the Sun Belt each of the past two seasons in scoring defense in conference-only play. Over the last 44 league games, the Mountaineers have allowed just 64.8 points per game. App State enters this weekend's games as the Sun Belt's leader in scoring defense in conference-only play, allowing 67.1 points per contest.
Offensive rebounding has become a major emphasis for App State this season, as it enters this weekend's games as the Sun Belt's third-ranked team in offensive rebounding (12.3 per game). App State has grabbed at least 10 offensive rebounds in each of its last six games, which is the longest streak for the Mountaineers since they opened last season with six consecutive games with double-digit offensive rebounds.
Three players enter the weekend averaging at least 10 points in
Kasen Jennings (14.8), Dodd (13.6) and
Luke Wilson (10.6). Jennings and Dodd each tallied 23 points on Jan. 15 against JMU, marking the first time this season that two or more Mountaineers have eclipsed 23 points in the same game. Dodd has been especially hot since Sun Belt play opened, as he is averaging 17.4 points a game, which is the seventh-highest tally in the league. Dodd enters the weekend having scored at least 20 points in back-to-back-to-back games.
Scouting the Ragin' Cajuns
Louisiana enters Thursday's contest in Boone with a 5-15 record and a 3-5 league record. Despite its record, the Ragin' Cajuns did recently pull off an upset, as they defeated South Alabama, which came into that game in fourth place in the Sun Belt standings, by three points on the road. Louisiana has won two of its last four games heading into Thursday's matchup in Boone.
The Ragin' Cajuns see two players who average in double figures entering Thursday in Dorian Finister and Jackson Olvera. Olvera hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds on the clock in last Saturday's win at South Alabama. Finister has reached double figures in scoring in 10 of his last 11 games entering Thursday.
In his first season as head coach of the Ragin' Cajuns, Quannas White has stressed defense, which has led Louisiana to the third-best scoring defense in the Sun Belt Conference. In Sun Belt play, the Ragin' Cajuns trail only App State in scoring defense, allowing just 68.1 points per game. Louisiana hasn't allowed its opponent to reach 60 points in each of its last two games.
Scouting the Warhawks
ULM enters Friday's game with a 3-16 record and a 0-7 mark in conference play. The Warhawks have lost nine straight contests entering the weekend, but four of those losses have come by 10 or fewer points.
The Warhawks have played a tough schedule so far this year, as they have played against three high-major opponents in Kansas State (Dec. 28), Miami (Dec. 13) and Ole Miss (Nov. 7). In Sun Belt play, ULM has squared off against South Alabama and Southern miss twice, which are both in the top half of the Sun Belt's standings.
The Warhawks are one of the best teams in the nation at defending without fouling, as they enter Friday's contest against App State with the fifth-lowest fouls per game average in the nation. ULM fouls just 13.6 times per game. The Warhawks have posted four games this season with fewer than 10 fouls, which includes eight fouls against Georgia State in their last game.
Series History // Louisiana
The Mountaineers and Ragin' Cajuns are slated to meet for the 13th time on Thursday, with this being the only regular-season matchup between the two teams. This will also be Louisiana's first trip to Boone since Feb. 17, 2024, which saw the Mountaineers pick up an 85-73 victory.
App State and Louisiana met last season in Lafayette, which marked App State's first visit to Louisiana in the Kerns era, and the Ragin' Cajuns pulled off a six-point win.
Louisiana enters Thursday having won three of the last four games in the series, and owns the edge in the all-time series at 9-3 and holds a 5-2 advantage in the Holmes Center.
Series History // ULM
App State and ULM will meet for the 15th time on Friday and the seventh time at the Holmes Center in Boone. The two programs met almost a year ago to the date in Monroe last season, which saw App State cap off a 3-1 road trip with an eight-point victory.
This will be ULM's first trip to Boone in just over two years, as the Warhawks last came to the High Country on Dec. 30, 2023.
App State has won each of the last three matchups with ULM in Boone, which includes a double-digit win in that 2023 matchup at the Holmes Center. App State enters Friday's game having won each of the last five games against ULM.
Next Up
App State will hit the road for its next contest to visit the Southern Miss Golden Eagles in Hattiesburg, Miss., on Thursday. Tip off is slated for 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT), and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
