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Senior Adrian Delph led the Mountaineers with 20 in a Senior Day win. (Photo: App State Athletics)
BOONE, N.C. – Senior Day is always special. Saturday in the Holmes Center presented even more opportunity for a celebration.
The four App State seniors – Adrian Delph, Michael Almonacy, Justin Forrest, and James Lewis – ended arguably the most successful tenure in recent Mountaineer history, leaving the floor to hugs from teammates and a rousing ovation from the largest crowd in 10 years. The foursome paced their club in scoring, notching 55 of the team’s 69 points in a 69-51 decision over visiting South Alabama before an announced crowd of 4,508.
“It means a lot,” said Forrest. “These guys are my family for life. The way they just went out there and played hard for me and for all of us – App State basketball has grown so much. It’s amazing to see. I’ve been through so much in my time here at App. This moment is something that I actually dreamed of.”
Almonacy added, “Everything’s about momentum in conference play. Getting that win after two tough losses – I think we stepped it up a lot tonight. We really grew tonight as a team, defensively and offensively, throughout the whole game.”
Mountaineers coach Dustin Kerns also honored his seniors after the game.
“Our seniors are to be commended. We just solidified the third-straight winning season. That’s the first time that’s happened here since 1998-2000,” Kerns said. “Our seniors helped change the course of this program. They’re to be commended for that. That’s a big deal. I’m just really proud of our guys.”
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF
App State (17-12, 11-5 Sun Belt) took an early lead it would not relinquish, as Adrian Delph broke the seal with a triple from the left side off a kick-out from the paint at the 17:54 mark, putting the Mountaineers in the lead; Delph splashed another triple under a minute later to spot App the game’s first six points
Delph dropped another triple from the top of the circle just inside the 16-minute mark to put the Mountaineers ahead, 9-2
South Alabama (18-9, 8-6 Sun Belt) used a stoppage to regain composure and fire off a 7-0 run over a roughly two-minute span to draw within a pair at 16-14 (9:22)
Michael Almonacy cashed in a rhythm triple from the left wing to slow the prolonged South Alabama run (3:46)
Following a Javon Franklin layup for South Alabama, App State went on a 9-0 run, punctuated by a CJ Huntley dunk on an alley-oop and another Almonacy triple
The run afforded App State a 30-19 advantage at the interval; Adrian Delph paced the Mountaineers and all scorers with 12
HALFTIME STATS
App State: 34% FG (10-29), 33% 3FG (6-18), 80% FT (4-5), 1.034 PPP (29 trips), 41.4% scoring, 13.8% turnovers
South Alabama: 27% FG (7-26), 20% 3FG (1-5), 57% FT (4-7), .655 PPP (29 trips), 31.0% scoring, 20.2% turnovers
SECOND HALF
Justin Forrest splashed a three to start the second half and extend the Mountaineer run to 12-0 (19:40)
Another Forrest triple, paired with one from Delph, compelled a South Alabama stoppage (39-21 App State, 17:36)
App continued its offensive barrage out of that stoppage, extending the lead to 51-32 (12:43)
Delph banged home another triple at the 10:17 mark, affording the Mountaineers their largest lead of the game to that point (56-34)
An Alex Anderson bucket and four quick points from Jay Jay Chandler provided a 6-0 Jaguar run over a three-minute stretch, knifing the margin to 16 with 6:24 to play
App State closed out the game from there, never allowing the Jaguars any closer and sending out the seniors on a high note
FINAL STATS
App State: 41.3% FG (26-63), 38.2% 3FG (13-34), 80% FT (4-5), 1.169 PPP (59 trips), 47.5% scoring, 11.9% turnovers
South Alabama: 36.8% FG (21-57), 23.1% 3FG (3-13), 54.5% FT (6-11), .879 PPP (58 trips), 41.4% scoring, 15.5% turnovers
APP STATE 69, SOUTH ALABAMA 51
SOUTH ALABAMA (18-9, 8-6 SUN BELT): Thomas 0-4 0-0 0, Smith 2-3 0-0 6, Franklin 3-6 0-0 6, Manning 4-16 0-1 8, Chandler 3-10 4-8 11, Jones 0-3 0-0 0, Goncalves 0-2 0-0 0, Kearing 6-7 2-2 14, Anderson 3-6 0-0 6, Shirley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-57 6-11 51.
APP STATE (17-12, 11-5): Lewis 5-7 0-0 10, Forrest 4-11 2-3 13, Almonacy 4-8 0-0 12, Gregory 4-11 0-0 8, Delph 7-16 0-0 20, Duhart 0-0 0-0 0, Huntley 1-6 2-2 4, Mantis 0-2 0-0 0, Eads 0-0 0-0 0, Harcum 0-1 0-0 0, Glushkov 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 26-63 4-5 69.
Halftime — App State 30-19. 3-Point Goals—App State 13-34 (Forrest 3-8, Almonacy 4-8, Delph 6-12, Huntley 0-4, Mantis 0-2), South Alabama 3-13 (Thomas 0-3, Smith 2-2, Manning 0-3, Chandler 1-3, Goncalves 0-2). Fouled Out — NA. Rebounds —App State 41 (Lewis 9), South Alabama 37 (Franklin/Anderson 6). Assists —App State 22 (Gregory 10), South Alabama 6 (Manning 3). Total Fouls — South Alabama 10, App State 9. Technical — NA. A —4508.
HUSTLE STATS Points in the paint: South Alabama 30, App State 26
Points off turnovers: South Alabama 5, App State 5
Second-chance points: App State 11, South Alabama 6
Fast-break points: South Alabama 5, App State 4
NOTABLE
App State assisted on 22 of 26 baskets, the highest total of the year (previous high was 21 twice, at Furman and at Duke)
The Mountaineers also snagged 11 offensive boards, tied for their third-highest total of the year with Georgia State (15 at Georgia State, 14 at North Carolina)
App set a season-high for three-pointers, draining 13 on 34 attempts (previous high was 12 against Boyce)
App’s seven turnovers were the second-lowest total on the season (previous low 6 against Vermont and ETSU)
Delph’s six threes were his second-highest output of the year (7 against Delaware and Louisiana-Monroe)
Gregory's 10 assists were a career-high (previous high 6 against Coastal Carolina and Georgia State)
QUOTABLE
NEXT UP
App State travels to Little Rock Wednesday to battle the Trojans. Game time is set for 7:30 (Eastern). South Alabama returns home to the Mitchell Center to square off with Texas State. That Wednesday contest will tip off at 8:00 (Eastern).
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