By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — When two college basketball teams are both nationally ranked among the highest in scoring defense, a low-scoring game is probably in the offing. On Feb. 4, App State and South Alabama took to the court with a lot on the line — and produced a classic.
After 10 lead changes as well as scoring runs and comeback rallies by both the Mountaineers and the Jaguars, App State emerged as the 65-57 winner to extend its winning streak to five games.
The Mountaineers finished with three players in double figures scoring, including guard Jalen Tot (23 points), guard Alonzo Dodd (18) and center/forward Luke Wilson (11). Tot’s scoring line featured 7-of-17 (41.2 percent) shooting from beyond the 3-point arc. Dodd and Wilson posted double-doubles on the night, Dodd with 13 rebounds and Wilson pulling down 11 boards to go along with their scoring.
Against a South Alabama team averaging 73.5 points per game, offensively, App State faced yet another strong challenge with the stingiest of defenses. Coming off a landmark upset of Troy when the Mountaineers held the Trojans to just 44 points — an astonishing 41 points below their season average of 85 — App State followed up with another stellar defensive effort against the Jaguars. Wilson added two blocked shots to his stat line for the game, while Dodd, Tot and Eren Banks each recorded a steal. In what was largely an error-free game in terms of ball-handling, South Alabama’s five turnovers were a critical factor in the Mountaineers’ staying on top.
Slamma Jamma: Luke Wilson produces some ‘thunder’
South Alabama almost played spoiler, too, with a defensive effort that kept App State’s scoring productivity below the team’s average so far this year (nearly 72 points per game). Offensively, the Jaguars were led by guard Chaze Harris (17 points), guard Jayden Cooper (16) and guard Randy Brady (9).
Perhaps the most overlooked stat in this game: South Alabama forward Adam Olsen averaged 18.3 points per game leading up to the encounter with App State — but was effectively defended by the Mountaineers on this night. He was limited to just six points. Credited with only three rebounds, Olsen was largely a non-factor in the paint thanks to the defensive efforts of Wilson and sophomore forward Michael Marcus, Jr.
“That was a hard fought game against a really good program,” said App State head coach Dustin Kerns to open his post-game press conference. “South Alabama is a really good team with an identity. We knew this was going to be a back and forth, tough game. When we needed to make shots, we got some shots. When we needed to make some stops, we got the stops. I am really proud of our guys for the hard fought win.”
Facing the ‘Syracuse of the South’
Kerns smiled in comparing two of the top defenses in NCAA Division I men’s basketball, the Mountaineers at No. 13 according to the NCAA statistical website, the Jaguars tied at No. 41 — out of 361 NCAA Division I programs.
“Obviously, we are man-to-man (on defense) and they are all zone,” said Kerns in noting the differences. “And they are really good at it, maybe the ‘Syracuse of the South’, I guess. It was back and forth, back and forth. Ten lead changes, four times tied, and it seemed like more than that. Our biggest lead was near the end of the game. I don’t know that the final score was really indicative of how close this game was.”
Jalen Tot, the Mountaineer guard who transferred as a graduate student from Montana State-Billings, has provided a scoring spark for App State since earning a spot in the starting lineup in early January.
“As a transfer from the Division II level, now competing against bigger, stronger, more athletic guys, there is a little bit of a transition (to be expected),” Kerns said of Tot. “He figured that out. Jalen’s strengths are shooting.
“In playing against 40 minutes of zone defense, we talked to our guys about (being patient) and taking the right shot,” added Kerns. “You have to shoot some threes against a zone and we took 39 of them. I thought Jalen took 17 good threes. He didn’t force any or take bad shots and he made seven. Making seven of 17 from long distance (41 percent) is pretty good.”
Asked whether Tot’s growing reputation as a shooter is taking pressure off of the Mountaineers’ other playmakers, Kerns nodded his head.
“Yeah, he is stretching the floor,” said Kerns.
If there was any level of disappointment expressed by Kerns, it was an observation about game attendance. He was appreciative of the fans who attend and goes out of his way after every game to interact with and “high five” the student section, but also noted the obvious.
“We need more people,” said Kerns. “We had 2,000 people (tonight), but that is only a quarter of the capacity (of the Holmes Center). We are contending for a conference championship. We are right there at the top of the league, but we are 13th in league attendance (out of 14 teams). We need more people. Our guys have earned that.”
The Mountaineers next get on the Holmes Center court in a non-conference tilt vs. Eastern Michigan on Feb. 7, 3 p.m., in the second half of the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge. It is also Alumni Day.
Then it is back to Sun Belt Conference league play road games Feb. 11 (at Georgia Southern) and Feb. 14 (at James Madison) before two home matchups on Feb. 19 (vs. Marshall) and Feb. 21 (vs. Georgia Southern). They close out the regular season on Feb. 27, at Texas State.
Sun Belt Conference championship tournament play begins March 3 for the four lowest seeded teams (Nos. 11-14), with the winners playing the No. 9 and No. 10 seeds on March 4. The No. 1 and No. 2 seeded teams get byes into the semifinal games on March 8. The No. 3 and No. 4 seeded teams get byes into the quarterfinals on March 7.
The Sun Belt Conference championship tournament is hosted by the Pensacola Bay Center, in Pensacola, Fla.
SELECTED TEAM STATS
- Field goal %: USA 37%, APP 40%
- Field goals: USA 20-54, APP 21-53
- 3-point FG%: USA 38%, APP 28%
- 3-point FGs: USA 8-21, APP 11-39
- Free Throw %: USA 69%m APP 67%
- Free Throws: USA 9-13, APP 12-18
- Total Rebounds: USA 31, APP 40
- Defensive Rebounds: USA 25, APP 30
- Offensive Rebounds: USA 6, APP 10
- Second Chance Points: USA 3, APP 13
- Bench Points: USA 9, APP 4
- Points in the Paint: USA 20, APP 18
- Fast Break Points: USA 2, APP 10
- Blocked Shots by: USA 0, APP 2
- Steals: USA 5, APP 3
- Assists: USA 13, APP 12
- Time in Lead: USA 4:54, APP 31:22
SELECTED KEY INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES
- APP – Alonzo Dodd: 18 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal
- APP – Luke Wilson: 11 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocked shots
- APP – Jalen Tot: 23 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal
- APP – Kasen Jennings: 7 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists
- USA – Chaze Harris: 17 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists
- USA – Jayden Cooper: 16 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal
- USA – Randy Brady: 9 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists
- USA – Adam Olsen: 6 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
