Game 15 • South Alabama Jaguars (10-4) (0-1) vs. Appalachian State Mountaineers (7-8) (1-1)
January 6, 2022 • 7 p.m. (CST) • Mitchell Center • Mobile, Ala.
 
THE COACHES
South Alabama
Richie Riley (Eastern Kentucky, 2005)
Record at USA: 64-43 (4th year)
Overall Record: 99-71 (6th year)
Record vs. App State: 6-2
 
Appalachian State
Dustin Kerns (Clemson, 2002)
Record at App State: 42-35 (3rd year)
Overall Record: 73-72
Record vs. South Alabama: 2-4

LAST GAME
South Alabama fell at UTA 89-87 in overtime. Appalachian State defeated ULM 77-69 on Saturday.

NEXT GAME
USA will take on Coastal Carolina on Saturday at 3 p.m. (CST) at the Mitchell Center.
 
ON THE AIR
Radio: Sports Talk 99.5: J.T. Crabtree (pxp) Joe McNulty (color)
Web: http://sportstalk995.iheart.com/listen (audio)
ESPN+ (Internet Streaming): J.D. Byars (pxp) Pat Greenwood (color)

RANKINGS
USA: #136 Sagarin, NET #118
Appalachian State: #208 Sagarin, NET #226

THE SERIES
South Alabama leads the series 12-3 all-time against Appalachian State and has won four of the last five meetings between the two schools.

NOTES
- South Alabama's 10 wins are the most entering conference play since the 1985-86 team won 10 games and the 10-4 start through 14 games is the best since the 2009-10 team started 10-4.
 
- The Jaguars are 7-0 at home at the Mitchell Center this season.
 
- South beat App State in three out of four matchups a year ago. Richie Riley's six wins over App State are tied for the most against a Sun Belt opponent since he joined the program as head coach.
 
- USA's NET ranking of #118 is the highest among Sun Belt teams.
 
- Riley is 2-1 in Sun Belt home openers, with all three matchups coming against the Mountaineers.
 
- USA has already had an eight-game winning streak this season. Dating back to the 2019-20 season, South Alabama has had an eight-game winning streak each year.
 
- South Alabama scored a season-best 87 points against an NCAA Division 1 opponent this season in the 89-87 loss to UTA. South tied a season-high with 16 assists against the Mavericks.
 
- With a win on Thursday, Riley will reach 100 wins for his career.
 
- The Jaguars have forced at least 10 turnovers in every game this season.
 
- South is ranked 62nd in the NCAA in scoring defense, giving up just 63.0 points per game. The Jaguars have held teams under 70 points in 12 out of 14 contests this season.
 
- USA is ranked in the top 3 of the Sun Belt in scoring defense, scoring offense (75.9), scoring margin (12.9), turnover margin (4.1), blocked shots per game (5.1) and turnovers forced (17.21).
 
- Jay Jay Chandler has scored in double figures in 11 consecutive games and scored a career-high 23 points at Tarleton.
 
- Charles Manning Jr. is the leading scorer in the Sun Belt, averaging 17.9 points a game. Manning Jr. posted a career-best 26 points against UTA on Thursday and has scored 20 points or more in six games this season.
 
- Javon Franklin set career-highs in rebounds, offensive rebounds (11), free throws made (5), free throws attempted (9) and minutes played (41) at UTA. Franklin posted his third double-double of the season and the 11 offensive rebounds were the most by a South Alabama player this season.
 
- Over his last six games, Franklin is shooting 38-of-48 (79.1 percent) from the field.
 
- Kayo Goncalves ranks fourth in the Sun Belt with 29 three-pointers this season. Goncalves needs eight points to reach 1,000 points in his NCAA career.
 
Fans in attendance will be required to supply and wear masks to gain entry into the arena as well as when they are not able to socially distance from other individuals, and pregame and halftime access to the John Counts Room will not be available.  People who would like to disperse and practice social distancing will be able to move to seats in the upper level if desired.

A limited number of masks will be available upon entry at the Mitchell Center if needed.
 
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics.  Contributions to the South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give

—USA—