BOONE, N.C. - Due to the expected incoming winter weather, the App State women's basketball team's game against Louisiana in Lafayette, La., originally scheduled for Saturday afternoon, has moved up to Friday at 7 p.m. ET (6 p.m. CT). Fans will be able to stream the game on ESPN+.
Last Time Out
The Mountaineers (8-10, 1-7 SBC) are headed to Lafayette after falling short to Texas State, 63-49, in San Marcos on Wednesday. Senior
Emma Smith led the Black and Gold in scoring for the sixth time this winter, netting 14 points. She also led the team with three assists and combined with fellow senior
Elena Pericic and junior
Daisia Mitchell for 15 of App State's 29 rebounds.
Rankings Report
Sophomore
Jayden McBride, Mitchell, and Smith are the Mountaineers' top scorers, averaging 10.8, 10.1, and 10.0 points per contest. Additionally, Smith is the Mountaineers' leader in rebounds (6.3 rpg), assists (3.9 ast/g), and steals (1.9 stl/g). Through 18 games, Smith leads the Sun Belt and ranks 75th nationally in assist to turnover ratio (1.84).
App State remains the conference's leader and ranks 55th in the NCAA in scoring defense (58.6). The Mountaineers also round out the nation's top 50 in rebound margin (6.3) and stand second in the league in field goal percentage (43.5%). In conference-only action, App State rounds out the top five in free throw percentage (71.3%) and assists, averaging 13.13 per Sun Belt clash.
Series History at Louisiana
Entering their 15th matchup, the Mountaineers' and Ragin' Cajuns' series is evenly split at 7-7. App State defeated Louisiana, 61-52, in Boone on Jan. 30, 2025. The Mountaineers' top scorers,
Eleyana Tafisi and
Elena Pericic, matched with 13 points apiece. Tafisi also recorded five steals and combined with
Zada Porter for eight of App State's assists. Pericic drained three of the Black and Gold's 3-point buckets, while
Rylan Moffitt pulled down a team-high seven boards.
Scouting Louisiana
Louisiana (2-17, 1-8 SBC) returns to the Cajundome court after marking their first Sun Belt win of the season, defeating Coastal Carolina, 69-66, on Wednesday. The win was Louisiana's first against an NCAA Division I opponent this season and snapped a seven-game drought dating back to New Year's Day.
Freshman guard Amijah Price is the Ragin' Cajuns' top scorer, averaging 12.3 points per game. She also ranks third in the SBC in free throws with 66 this season. Following Price is junior guard Mikaylah Manley and freshman guard Imani Daniel, who average 11.7 and 11.4 points per game, respectively. Daniel leads Louisiana averaging 6.2 boards per contest, while junior guard Bianca Silva leads the team in assists, dishing out 2.3 per game.
Louisiana rounds out the Sun Belt's top five in free throw percentage with a clip of 71.1% this winter. Through nine conference games, Manley ranks fourth in the SBC in free throw percentage (85.7%).
On the Horizon
The Mountaineers will return to Boone to close out the month of January with a pair of clashes against South Alabama on Jan. 29 and ULM on Jan. 31. Thursday's game against the Jaguars is set for 6:30 p.m. and will be Luau Night. App State will celebrate National Girls & Women in Sports Day on Saturday at 1 p.m. against ULM. Both games will be available to stream on ESPN+.
