By David Rogers. STATESBORO, Ga. — Georgia Southern rallied late in the first half to narrow a 9-point deficit to just four points at intermission, but a 9-2 run by App State to open the second half strengthened the Mountaineers momentum as they cruised to a n 81-65 win over the Eagles on Feb. 11 and extend their consecutive game winning streak to seven games — and sole possession of the No. 1 spot in the Sun Belt Conference men’s basketball standings.
Guard Kasen Jennings poured in 31 points for the Mountaineers, hitting 3-of-8 from behind the arc and going 10-of-11 at the charity stripe. Starting forward Michael Marcus, Jr. added a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds, guard Alonzo Dodd contributed 18 points and three steals, and center/forward Luke Wilson swatted away four blocked shots while collecting seven rebounds to help power the Mountaineers.
Important for this outing: App State improved to 71 percent shooting from the foul line, improving on the bottom-feeder ranking nationally in that NCAA Division I category they have been sporting. Collectively, they made good on 20-of-28 free throws against Georgia Southern, led by Jennings’ 10-of-11 and Marcus’ 5-of-5 from the charity stripe.
Still aiming to finish the regular season at No. 1 in the Sun Belt Conference and earn a bye into the semifinals of the conference championship tournament (Mar. 3-9, in Pensacola, Fla.), the Mountaineers have four remaining regular season games, all in conference: at James Madison (Feb. 14), vs. Marshall (Feb. 19), vs. Georgia Southern (Feb. 21) and at Texas State (Feb. 27).
