BOONE, N.C. - Looking to extend a season-long five-game win streak to six, the App State men's basketball team will take a step out of its conference schedule by welcoming the Eastern Michigan Eagles to the Holmes Center on Saturday for the second installment of the 2025-26 MAC-SBC Challenge. App State will look to post its first win in this season's challenge on Saturday after falling to Central Michigan to open the season in the first installment. Tipoff from the Holmes Center is slated for 1 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
App State is set to play its final nonconference game of the season when it welcomes Eastern Michigan to Boone on Saturday. The Mountaineers posted a 7-5 record in the early portion of their nonconference slate, with highlight wins over in-state rivals Charlotte (Nov. 21), ECU (Dec. 11) and High Point (Dec. 14). App State enters Saturday having won each of its last four nonconference games.
Saturday's game will mark the final installment of the 2025-26 MAC-SBC Challenge, a scheduling alliance between the Sun Belt and the MAC in men's and women's basketball. App State owns a 2-3 record since the challenge's inception before the 2023-24 season, posting wins over Toledo (2024) and Ohio (2025). App State has won the second game of the two-game challenge every year.
The Mountaineers own a 9-3 record at home this season, placing them one win away from posting their fifth straight 10-win season at home. The Mountaineers entered the year with four straight 10-win seasons in their home building, which marked the first time in the Holmes Center era (Nov. 2000-Pres.) that they have done that. A win on Saturday would secure a fifth straight 10-win season for the first time in App State's Division I history (1972-Pres.).
The Matchup
- Who: App State vs. Eastern Michigan
- Where: Holmes Convocation Center // Boone, N.C.
- When: Saturday, Feb. 7 // 1 p.m.
Tune In
- Watch: Watch (ESPN+) | David Jackson (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
In a matchup between the two most successful teams in the Sun Belt Conference since 2019, and the two best scoring defenses in the league this season, the App State men's basketball team rallied late to turn a tie game with 3:28 to play in regulation into a 65-57 victory over the South Alabama Jaguars at the Holmes Center. The game saw 10 lead changes, but App State's strong defense and home-court advantage eventually wore the Jaguars out.
App State knew it needed to shoot and make 3-pointers against South Alabama's (16-7, 7-4 SBC) strong 2-3 zone defense, and it did that, as it tallied 11 made 3-pointers on Wednesday.
Jalen Tot accounted for seven of those, which matched the mark for the most made by a Mountaineer in a game this season. Tot's strong shooting paid off late in the game, as his 3-pointer with 3:07 to play in the game broke a 51-51 tie to give the Mountaineers a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
As has been the case during their five-game win streak, the Mountaineers were strong defensively, holding the Jaguars to 57 points. This marked the fourth time in the last five games that App State has held its opponent below the 60-point threshold. App State's defense helped it at the end of both halves on Wednesday, as it forced South Alabama to miss seven of its final eight shots to end the first half and four of its final six shots to end the game.
Scouting the Mountaineers
App State enters play on Saturday with a 16-9 record and a 9-4 record in Sun Belt play, which places it in sole possession of second place in the league standings, and just a half game out of first place. App State enters play against the Eagles on a season-long five-game winning streak, which is the longest active win streak in the Sun Belt Conference entering the game. The Mountaineers have won 12 of their last 16 games dating back to Dec. 3, and are one of just two teams (Troy) with nine Sun Belt wins entering Saturday.
App State's 3-point shooting has been a key contributor to its recent success as it enters play on Saturday having shot at least 35 percent in three of its last five contests. App State has also made at least 11 3-pointers in three of its last five outings (13 against Louisiana,13 against Troy and 11 against South Alabama), while burying 47 percent of its treys at Southern Miss on Jan. 29. The Mountaineers have made at least 10 threes in seven games this season, and four of them have come over the last seven games.
App State has been a great rebounding team over the past 15 games, as it enters play on Saturday having grabbed at least 35 rebounds in 13 of its last 16 contests. Additionally, App State has won the rebounding battle in 12 of its last 13 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 15-2 this season when grabbing at least 35 rebounds compared to 1-7 when grabbing fewer than 35.
The Mountaineers are led by a trio of double-digit scorers entering Saturday in
Kasen Jennings (15.2),
Alonzo Dodd (12.9) and
Luke Wilson (10.2). Jennings posted a 33-point game against Troy last Saturday, which helped him garner Sun Belt Player of the Week honors. Additionally, Tot has been a nice addition to the starting lineup as of recently, as he has scored in double figures six times since entering the starting lineup on Jan. 8 against Georgia State. This includes two 20-point games (Jan. 22 and Feb. 4).
Scouting the Eagles
Eastern Michigan enters Saturday's game in Boone with a 9-14 record, which includes a 3-8 record in MAC play. The Eagles are currently on a five-game losing streak, but each of their last two games has been decided by three points or fewer. Eastern Michigan lost by just two points to Akron, which is the sixth-ranked team in this week's Mid-Major Top 25, by two points in its last game.
The Eagles are led offensively by three double-digit scorers in Mohammad Habhab (14.2 points per game), Carlos Hart (13.1 points per game) and Addison Patterson (13.0 points per game). Habhab has finished in double figures in all but four games this year, while Patterson scored 16 against Akron last Tuesday.
Eastern Michigan hangs its hat on its defense, as it enters play in Boone with the third-best scoring defense in the MAC, allowing 72.7 points per game. The Eagles also rank second in the league in blocks per game, swatting away four shots per contest. Godslove Nwabude leads the team and ranks third in the MAC with 30 blocks, while Habhab has rejected 28 shots this season to place him in sixth.
Series History
App State and Eastern Michigan are slated to square off for the first time on Saturday, in what is App State's second meeting with a team from Michigan this season (Central Michigan on Nov. 3).
The Mountaineers enter Saturday with a 2-3 record in the MAC-SBC Challenge and a 5-12 record against current MAC opponents. Eastern Michigan will mark the sixth different opponent that App State will face as part of the challenge.
Entering Saturday, the MAC owns a 9-4 edge in this year's challenge and will look for its first win since its inception in 2023-24.
Next Up
Following Saturday's game, the Mountaineers will hit the road for the first of two matchups with the Georgia Southern Eagles on Wednesday. Tipoff from Statesboro is slated for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
