HARRISONBURG, Va. - Looking to stay hot and extend its win streak to eight games, the App State men's basketball team is set for a Saturday afternoon showdown with the James Madison Dukes at the Atlantic Union Bank Center in the team's penultimate road game of the regular season. This will be the second and final matchup between App State and James Madison this season (last met on Jan. 15 in Boone). Tipoff from Harrisonburg is slated for 4 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
App State enters Saturday's game in first place in the Sun Belt standings after it defeated Georgia Southern on Wednesday, and Troy lost to Texas State. App State is the only Sun Belt team with 10 wins entering the game against the Dukes. The Mountaineers will look to win their second regular-season Sun Belt championship in the last three years (won in 2023-24).
App State's victory over Georgia Southern on Wednesday secured its 10th conference victory of the season, marking the third straight season that it has posted 10 wins in league play. The last time the Mountaineers recorded back-to-back-to-back 10-win conference seasons was from 1997-2000, which culminated in an NCAA Tournament berth in 2000. App State enters Saturday with 36 conference wins over the last two seasons.
Due to its recent success, App State jumped into the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 on Monday, checking in at No. 24 in the poll. It marks the first time since the final poll of the 2023-24 season that the Mountaineers have been ranked in the poll. The Mountaineers have been ranked in at least one of the Mid-Major polls in three different seasons since Kerns took over the program in 2019 (2020-21 and 2023-24). App State is one of two Sun Belt teams ranked in this week's poll (Troy - 18th).
The Matchup
- Who: App State at James Madison
- Where: Atlantic Union Bank Center // Harrisonburg, Va.
- When: Saturday, Feb. 14 // 4 p.m.
Tune In
- Watch: Watch (ESPN+) | Curt Dudley (PxP), Steve Buckhantz(Color), Cathleen Paulson (Sideline)
- 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
Leading by just four points at halftime after Georgia Southern made a 3-pointer with eight seconds to play, it appeared that Wednesday's game was heading toward a tight finish. But App State embarked on a 14-5 run to open the half to jump out to a 13-point lead, which helped it post an 81-65 victory over the Eagles in Statesboro. The win and a Troy loss to Texas State moved App State into first place in the Sun Belt standings.
Kasen Jennings stole the show on Wednesday against Georgia Southern, as he posted his second 30-point game in the last 10 days with 31 points. Jennings scored 14 first-half points and 17 second-half points to get to the final tally. He became the first Mountaineer since Justin Forrest and Ronshad Shabazz in 2018-19 to post multiple 30-point games in the same season with a free throw at the 2:19 mark of the first half.
App State turned a seven-point lead with just under 10 minutes to go into an 18-point lead by the final media timeout, which played a key role in draining the energy from the home crowd. Jennings played catalyst during this run, as he poured in 11 of his 31 points during this stretch, and kick-started the run with a strong move to the basket through contact for an and-1 chance after the Eagles trimmed their deficit down to seven.
Scouting the Mountaineers
App State enters play on Saturday with an 18-9 record and a 10-4 record in Sun Belt play. The Mountaineers have won 14 of their last 18 games dating back to Dec. 3. App State also enters the game against the Dukes as one of two Sun Belt teams with at least 18 wins overall this season (South Alabama).
The Mountaineers continue to be one of the best defensive teams in the Sun Belt Conference and the country entering Saturday as they pace the league in scoring defense, allowing 64.1 points a game, which is four full points ahead of the next closest team (South Alabama - 68.1. App State has finished in the country's top 50 in scoring defense each of the past four seasons, and enters play on Saturday with the 10th-best scoring defense nationally. App State is looking to finish with a top-15 scoring defense for the second straight season (finished 12th last season).
App State has been a great rebounding team over the past 18 games, as it enters play on Saturday having grabbed at least 35 rebounds in 15 of its last 18 contests. Additionally, App State has won the rebounding battle in 14 of its last 15 contests entering Saturday (saw its streak of 10 games end on Jan. 29 at Southern Miss). When App State has won this season, rebounding has played a crucial role, as it is 17-2 this season when grabbing at least 35 rebounds compared to 1-7 when grabbing fewer than 35.
The Mountaineers are led by a duo of double-digit scorers entering Saturday in Jennings (15.6) and
Alonzo Dodd (13.5). Jennings enters Saturday having posted two 30-point games over his last four outings after tallying 31 at Georgia Southern on Wednesday, while Dodd poured in 18 points to mark his fifth straight double-digit scoring game. Additionally,
Michael Marcus Jr. provided a spark on Wednesday at Georgia Southern with a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double, which was his second 20-point, 10-rebound double-double of the year.
Scouting the Dukes
James Madison is 13-13 this season, and enters play on Saturday on a two-game winning streak after downing Georgia State in overtime on Thursday. The Dukes also defeated Toledo last Saturday in the MAC-SBC Challenge by two points, which helped the Sun Belt secure the victory over the MAC in the 2025-26 Challenge.
Of the Dukes' 13 wins this season, nine of them have come at the Atlantic Union Bank Center. JMU has owned one of the best home-court advantages in the Sun Belt since it joined the league before the 2022-23 season, as it has won at least 10 games at home each year it has been a member of the league. Since 2022-23, the Dukes have lost just nine times at home.
The Dukes boast one of the Sun Belt's best scorers entering Saturday in Justin McBride, who stands tied for seventh in the league in scoring at 16.6 points per game. McBride scored 22 points against the Panthers on Thursday, which marked his ninth 20-point game of the season. Additionally, Cliff Davis, who scored 26 points on Thursday, has provided a nice spark in Sun Belt play, as he is averaging 16 points per game against league foes.
Series History
The Mountaineers and Dukes will meet for the second time this season and the 14th time overall on Saturday. This will be App State's final trip to the state of Virginia this season (Last went to Virginia to play Old Dominion on Dec. 31).
App State posted an 80-65 victory over James Madison in Boone back on Jan. 15, which marked App State's fifth straight win over James Madison dating back to 2024. Both Dodd and Jennings scored 23 points against the Dukes in the January matchup, with Jennings surpassing 1,000 career points in the win as well.
App State will look for its first season sweep of a Sun Belt opponent this season after splitting each of its previous three series this season against Georgia State, Old Dominion and Coastal Carolina.
Next Up
The Mountaineers will open up their final homestand of the season on Thursday by playing host to Marshall at the Holmes Center. Tipoff from Boone is slated for 6:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
