Monthly Archives: November 2012

Women’s Basketball 77, Xavier 73

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Pregame:

Appalachian will face it second tough out of conference game of the season when it visits Xavier of the Atlantic 10 on Friday evening. Xavier is led by second year head coach Amy Waugh, who is a 2003 Xavier graduate. Waugh served as assistant for two years prior to be named head coach in 2011. She is Xavier’s sixth head coach in program history and the first alumnus named to the position.

Xavier only lists eleven players on their roster, over half which are made up of freshman and sophomores. Despite the short bench, Xavier plays everyone. Nine players have played in every game, while ten players have averaged at least 14 minutes a game. Not one player on their roster averages more than 32 minutes. Compare that to Appalachian, with thirteen players on their roster, with very similar underclassmen numbers, utilizes more of a seven player rotation, mostly of upperclassmen.

Xavier (3-2) has two players averaging double figures in Shatyra Hawkes (14.2) and Ashley Wanninger (10.0). Both Hawkes and Wanninger also lead the team in three pointers made with seven and eleven respectively. The two account for 75% of the team’s made three pointers. Lakeisha Crouch averages a respectable 7.8 points and 7.2 rebounds a game while Jessica Pachko scores nine points a game while grabbing seven rebounds per contest. Those four players combine for 19 of Xavier’s 25 starts this season.

The Musketeers have played every game at home this season, with wins over RPI #119 Bucknell, RPI #287 Morehead State and RPI #282 High Point. Their losses are to top women’s teams in Michigan and Duke. Their opponents record who Xavier has beaten is 6-11, while their losses are to teams with a combined 10-2 record. According to realtimerpi.com, this game has been “scouted” as an Appalachian win.

The Mountaineers (4-1) come into the game with a three game winning streak, picking up wins over Campbell and Norfolk State at the ECU Invitational. As the season has progressed, Appalachian’s RPI has slowly crept into the top 100, as they are currently ranked #88. Appalachian is getting nearly 50% of their scoring from seniors Anna Freeman (21.0) and Courtney Freeman (16.4). The Freeman’s also account for over a third of the Mountaineers rebounds. As a team, Appalachian is forcing 25 turnovers a game, compared to Xavier who commits nearly 19 turnovers per game.

Postgame:

In a game where the Mountaineers dominated, Xavier continued to fight and force overtime in a thrilling game. The Musketeers were able to convert two four point plays in the second half. One occasion was on a traditional foul on a three point shooter who hit the basket, while the occured on a play where a Mountaineer tried to fight through a screen, at the same time Xavier hit a three.

Perhaps the most amazing statistic of the night occurred in overtime. Appalachian scored 17 points in the five minute extra period, and did so by only missing one a shot, a free throw. Appalachian hit all five field goal attempts, including two three pointers while knocking down five of six free throws.

Twenty-two fouls were called on Appalachian, and when that happens with a seven player rotation, foul trouble is going to become an issue. Maryah Sydnor fouled out with eight points and nine rebounds. Kelsey Sharkey finished with four fouls, four points and seven rebounds. Michelle Taylor and Farrahn Wood also finished with four fouls. Raven Gary did not play due to a foot injury, and her status for Monday’s game against Georgia Southern are unknown.

Anna Freeman led all scorers with 28 points and eight rebounds. Anna is now 22 points away from her 1500th career points. Courtney Freeman added 24 points and eight rebounds. We had hoped Courtney would score her 1,000th point at home against Gerogia Southern, and it is still possible. She is twenty four points short of the milestone.

Appalachian Football vs. Illinois State

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Here we go with the Second Round:

#16 Illinois State (8-3, Missouri Valley At-large) @ #7 Appalachian State (8-3, SoCon At-large)

Time: 2:00pm

TV/Video: ESPN3

Radio: WKBC 97.3 Wilkesboro, Charlotte, Winston Salem, Hickory & High Country; WATA 1450 Boone, Blowing Rock; ESPN 730 Charlotte, Rock Hill, Salisbury; WCOG 1320 Greensboro, Winston Salem, WMFR 1230 Greensboro, High Point; WSML 1200 Burlington, Greensboro; WCMC 99.9 Raleigh, WZGM 1350 Black Mountain, Asheville; WPWT 870 Bristol, Johnson City; WTOE 1470 Spruce Pine, WDNC 620 Durham, WLON 1050 Lincolnton

Kidd Brewer Stadium

Surface: Field Turf

Capacity: 24,050

Jeff Sagarin Ratings: 


ASU: 58.48

ISU: 62.73

Home: 2.90 points

Illinois State is favored by the Sagarin ratings by 1 ½ points (rounded).

Series: First Meeting

Last Meeting: n/a

WXAPP’s Boone Gameday Weather Trends:

8AM – Low 40s. Partly Cloudy
Noon – Mid 50s. Mostly Sunny
Kickoff – Mid 50s. Partly Cloudy
End of game – Low 50s.

From here until the season is over, every game is a battle. In seasons past, Appalachian would have a game or two on the schedule where a win seemed more likely than not, but that was not the case in 2012. Each week has already been a battle. The Mountaineers went at it for eleven straight weeks without a break. One can argue that the Coastal Carolina game was one of those easier games, but the Chanticleers are also in the playoffs. Montana and East Carolina provided tough tests early on in the season, and the Southern Conference was as strong as it has been in recent memory. Luckily for Appalachian, a three week break between their final regular season game and their first playoff game has provided some much needed rest. Illinois State played perhaps their toughest opponent on their schedule in their final game of the season against North Dakota State and sat on pins and needles the following day waiting to learn their playoff fate. Appalachian was all but a sure bet to make the playoffs. For Illinois State, this is their first playoff appearance since 2006 while the Mountaineers are in the postseason for the eighth straight year. However, don’t read into this Illinois State team as one that is just happy to be here. They set goals to win all their road games and did just that. It will have been four weeks since Illinois State last played a road game when foot hits leather on Saturday. Can the Redbirds maintain the road momentum?

The Mountaineers and Redbirds have never met before on the gridiron. Appalachian has played four of the Redbirds conference mates, all in the playoffs, most recently in 2010 against Western Illinois. Appalachian is 4-0 in those games, all being played in very familiar venues. Three times Missouri Valley opponents lost at Kidd Brewer Stadium. The fourth, Northern Iowa, lost to the Mountaineers in Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, a place the Mountaineers visit every other year when playing the Chattanooga Mocs.

Illinois State quarterback Matt Brown was the Missouri Valley offensive player of the year. He is big for a quarterback, tall and strong at 6’4 and 235 pounds. He is protected by one of the most underrated offensive lines at the FCS level. The Redbird line only allowed ten sacks on the season. They average 6’5” tall and 316 pounds across the board, with 59 combined starts. Brown has played in every game of his career, amassing some brilliant statistics. Brown is only 98 yards shy of surpassing 10,000 passing yards for his career. Considering he has thrown for 100 yards or more in 41 of his 44 games, hitting that milestone is almost a given. Although he is much bigger, Brown reminds me of Matt Barr, the 2010 Walter Payton Award finalist from Western Illinois. Brown is more accurate than Barr in 2010, but Barr throw for almost 800 more yards, and tossed seven more touchdowns. Brown is mobile, but does not use his athleticism too much outside the pocket beyond extending the play, opposed to running for first downs. When Barr came to Boone, he had a rough day, completing only 13 passes for 98 yards to go along with three interceptions. The weather in Boone that day might have played a factor as six inches of snow covered the High Country.

The Redbirds are a passing team, as the lead the Missouri Valley in passing yardage, but make no mistake, this team wants to establish possession and run the ball. Fifty-two percent of their play calls were runs. Seven of their games this season, Illinois State won the time of possession battle significantly. Twice the opposing team won the battle of possession, while two other instances, the difference was negligible. In their three losses, ISU lost the possession battle twice, most notably in their home shutout loss to Southern Illinois. Darrelynn Dunn is the primary ball carrier for the Redbirds. Dunn carried 221 times on the season, which is right at twenty-two carries a game, considering he did not play against Southern Illinois. The majority of his carries, 58% of them, were in the first five games of the season. The same can be said about his touchdown numbers. Nine of his twelve touchdowns were in the first five games of the season. In the latter half of the year, Dunn has slowed down, with only 307 of his 850 rushing yards coming in the Redbirds final five games.

Appalachian will counter Matt Brown with a great quarterback in the making in Jamal Jackson, who also needs less than 100 yards passing to hit a milestone. Jackson is 95 yards away from hitting 3,000 for the season. Jackson has completed a ridiculous 65% of his passes. His average of 264 passing yards a game would be higher had he been able to finish the game against Western Carolina. Jackson has become slightly one-dimensional since his injury, but has been flawless. Jackson has not thrown an interception since getting hurt and has added back to back 300 yard passing performances for the first time in his career. As Jamal goes, so do the Mountaineers, as they are 13-1 when he throws a touchdown pass in a game.

Stephen Miller has provided the perfect counter punch for the Appalachian offense when the Mountaineers run the ball. The all-conference performer ranks 11th nationally with 1,307 rushing yards on the season, while adding eleven rushing touchdowns. Miller has been a very capable receiver out of the backfield as well. Miller has twenty-nine catches for 367 yards and another four touchdowns. Most of his receptions are not the check down variety you normally see from a running back. His averages 12.6 yards per catch and many of his touchdowns have been wheel routes from out of the backfield.

Appalachian’s receiving corps is arguably one of the best in the nation. A freshman, Sean Price leads this group with 68 catches for 1,029 yards and eight touchdowns. Appalachian is a perfect 6-0 when he scores. To top it off, Price has put up these numbers in only nine games on the season. Andrew Peacock has come on really strong in the last weeks of the regular season. Forty-five of his sixty-eight catches have come in the last six games. Peacock had a career game the last time out against Furman, catching 11 passes for 130 yards and a touchdown and also throwing a seven yard touchdown pass on his only pass attempt of the season. Tony Washington and Malachi Jones are the possession receivers in this offense, but they also have game breaking ability. They catch just about everything that comes their way and have nicely complimented the rest of the Mountaineer offense. The scary thing about this group of receivers is that they all come back next year.

The deciding factor in this game, many have believed will be on the defensive side of the ball. On paper, Illinois State appears to have the better defense. All of their starting defensive line and linebackers are upperclassmen, with four seniors and three juniors. That experience will provide a test for a Mountaineer offensive line that some consider being very raw. The Redbirds are fourth nationally in sacks per game, while the Mountaineers are vulnerable to a less mobile Jamal Jackson. The key for Appalachian will be being able to run the football consistently. For the Redbirds, pressure on Jackson will be vital to them winning the game. The Mountaineers are a rhythm offense, that relies on stringing together consecutive plays of positive yardage. If Appalachian can protect Jackson, it could be a long day for Illinois State. Jackson has shown he can make just about every throw he needs to, and can sit back and pick apart defenses. I do not believe this Illinois State defense has played as team as athletic, and as skilled as Appalachian. Their coach referenced to his time as a coordinator with Purdue when speaking about the Mountaineers overall talent. It reminded him of a time when the Boilermakers played Georgia in the Capital One Bowl on New Years Day in 2005. Georgia had four players average over 13.5 yards per catch in that game. Three players averaged over 19 yards per catch on that day. For the Mountaineers, they must get the Redbirds off the field. This team looks like one that prefers a ball control game. They have been in shootouts to win games, and they also won in lower scoring battles, so they can adjust their style of play accordingly. This team got off to fast start to the season, winning their first five games, but has since finished the season 3-3. Their special teams is not the greatest, while Appalachian boasts one of the best punters in the nation in Sam Martin. Another interesting statistic I came across is how many penalties the Redbirds had been whistled for this season. Three times the Redbirds were called for two penalties or less in games, but on the other eight occasions, they averaged 9.5 flags per game. The Redbirds have also given up an abnormal amount of first downs via the penalty flag. Twenty-eight times, the Redbirds have given their opponents a new set of downs via penalty, mostly on personal fouls and pass interference calls. The last thing Illinois State needs to do is give an explosive offense like Appalachian extra yardage. I think this game has the making to be a classic, depending solely on Illinois State and how well they play. It appears to be a great matchup, one that will probably not be decided until the fourth quarter.

The First Pick:

State Birds 24

Mountaineers 30

Men’s Basketball 72 Duquesne 73

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Pregame:

Appalachian hosts Duquesne in Boone tonight in the first meeting between the two schools since a Mountaineer win in in 2005. Duquesnse is a member of the Atlantic 10 conference and currently ranks #195 at realtimerpi. The Dukes will be playing their third road game of the season, having lost their previous two road games at Albany and Georgetown. Duquesne is fresh off of a three game home stand in which they picked up victories over #249 James Madison and #288 Youngstown State, but lost to #77 North Dakota State. Sounds more like a gauntlet of FCS football programs than basketball powerhouses.

Duquesne was picked to finish last in the sixteen team A-10 in the preseason poll. Head coach Jim Ferry is in his first season at Duquesne after guiding LIU-Brooklyn to back to back NCAA tournament appearances. His teams are known for a high scoring brand of basketball, despite the Dukes averaging 67 points per game this far in 2012-13.

Duquesne is replacing two 1,000 point scorers who graduated last year. Currently, three Dukes are averaging in double figures, but the scoring drops off significantly after their big three. Senior guard Sean Johnson leads the team with 13.4 points per game. Johnson rebounds well from his position on the court, leading the team with six boards per game. Johnson also leads the team shooting 84% from the free throw line and is one of four players to start every game. Freshman point guard Derrick Colter leads the team with 21 assists, but also leads the team with 22 turnovers. Colter is second on the team is scoring at 11.8 points per contest. Sixth man Quevyn Winters is third on the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game, but has been inconsistent. Fifty-two of his fifty four points have come in three games. The Duquesne roster includes four players who grew up outside of the United States.

Appalachian has played better in its last two games against East Carolina and Virginia Tech, two teams who are a combined 10-0 at this point in the season. It is apparent that something happened with this team after the Campbell game and before the East Carolina game. Despite carrying a 1-4 record, and having yet to win a Division I game, these Mountaineers are improving and could be poised to break through tonight against a young Duquesne team. The Mountaineers are underdogs in their own house for the first time since playing Wofford last year. The four point spread is a good number for Appalachian. After covering two large spreads on the road, getting points at home seems like a guaranteed win. Last year, when getting points at home, the Mountaineers were 1-1, covering 8.5 against Davidson and losing by 2 to Wofford, in a game where the line was at 1.5. I’ll take the Mountaineers at home.

Postgame:

This game started off poorly for the Mountaineers as their weak defense continued to expose them. Appalachian was constantly leaving shooters wide open on the perimeter, and Duquesne took advantage. The Dukes were able to shoot 50% in the first half, draining seven of their twelve three point attempts as they raced out to a fourteen point halftime lead. The Dukes led by as many as nineteen points in the first half before Appalachian cut the lead in the final minutes. The Dukes surprised the Mountaineers with thirty bench points in the first half.

The second half was an entirely different story.  The Mountaineers started the period on a 9-0 run to cut the deficit to five points before the first media timeout. Five minutes later, the Mountaineers tied the game at 51. In the first nine minutes of the second half, Appalachian outscored Duquesne 18-4. The remainder of the half was a back and forth affair as the lead changed several times. The game was tied for the seventh time with seven minutes to play at 61, and then again four minutes later at 67. With 2:13 to play, the score was knotted for the ninth and final time of the game at 68. The Mountaineers took the lead with 0:47 to play an a layup by Michael Obacha. On the ensuing possession, Appalachian played defense like they did in the first half. Duquense worked the ball around quickly and found an open Quevyn Winters, who nailed a three pointer with 31 seconds left, giving the Dukes the one point lead. Tab Hamilton missed a jumper, and the Mountaineers were forced to foul. Jerry Jones knocked down both free throws with 14.4 seconds remaining. Jay Canty worked down the court and hit a layup, but had to score off of his own miss, which costed the Mountaineers a valuable 2 seconds on the game clock. Duquesne missed both free throws on the foul, with four seconds left, but the Mountaineers could not corral the rebound in enough time to be able to call a timeout and set up a final play. Nathan Healy’s three quarter court shot fell well short.

Despite the result, it was good to see this team fight to the finish. They easily could have quit and gone through the motions. Duquesne went cold in the second half, shooting only 31% from the field. The Dukes only knocked down two three pointers in the second half, but both of them gave them the lead when the game was either tied or they trailed. Appalachian shot 57% in the second half, and ended up 50% for the game, the first time this season the Mountaineers had hit half their shots in a game. Appalachian’s field goal defense was also their best mark of the season. Nathan Healy led the Mountaineers with 21 points, six rebounds and four blocks. Jay Canty scored fifteen and dished out ten assists. Tab Hamilton scored nineteen points and grabbed a career high seven rebounds. Healy (3) , Canty (1) and Hamilton (5) accounted for all nine Mountaineer three pointers. Brian Okam only played nine minutes before fouling out, but was as effective as he has ever been. Okam showed an inside move, worked well off screens and absolutely posterized some poor Duke player on a two-handed slam off of a pick and roll, where he was fouled, and hit the free throw. Jamaal Trice seems to be battling another illness as he sat almost the entire second half. Tevin Baskin played six minutes and turned the ball over three times.

We were correct with our pick of taking the Mountaineers at home being a four point underdog. It didn’t look good in the first half, and if there were bettors on the other side, they had to be furious in the second half. Interesting to know that even though the Mountaineers still do not have a Division I win, they have covered the spread in three straight games. Our record moved to 2-1 on the season, with a very high number likely coming at Missouri on Saturday. I am expecting someting around twenty. Tipoff coincides with kickoff of the playoff football game, so we will do our best to get a pick in sometime on Saturday morning, most likely from tailgate.

Women’s Basketball vs. Campbell & Norfolk State (@ECU Invitational)

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Campbell Pregame:

Campbell brings in a perfect 4-0 record into their game with Lady  Mountaineers at the East Carolina Thanksgiving Invitational. Campbell’s victims include a fifteen point victory over Western Carolina, Barber-Scotia, NC Central & Mt. St. Mary’s. Appalachian is 2-1 on the season with wins over Lees-McRae, Gardner-Webb and their lone loss is to Virginia Tech by three points. Campbell is led by Tonisha Baker, who is a stat sheet stuffer, similar to Anna Freeman. Baker averages 13.2 point, 3,5 steals, 3.5 assists and 4.8 rebounds per contest. The Camel’s top rebounders are Ashley James and Kiera Gaines, who are grabbing 7.5 and 7 rebounds per game respectively. The Camels are outrebounding their opponents by over 16 boards on the season, but also turn the ball over 19 times per game. Look for the Mountaineers to force at least 25 turnovers this afternoon.

The Mountaineers have some pretty impressive statistics coming into the Invitational. Besides the jaw dropping personal numbers, the Mountaineers are putting up some great team efforts each time out. The team is forcing 28.6 turnovers per game, and shooting free throws at an astounding 85% clip. The Mountaineers are also shooting 49% from the field, while 64% of the made field goals have been assisted on. Anna Freeman is averaging 25.7 points per game while Courtney Freeman is putting in 19.7 points per game. The tandem also leads the team in rebounding with Anna grabbing seven rebounds per game and Courtney is pulling down 5.3 boards per game.

Campbell Postgame:

The Camels put up a good fight before finally falling to Appalachian 69-54 on Saturday afternoon. The Mountaineers had an issue of the past rear its ugly head with a slow start. The Mountaineers led by six at halftime, shooting a dismal 39% in the first half. The Mountaineers led by as many as eight points in the first half. Campbell was able to stay close by hitting three of the their eight three point attempts.

Appalachian tightened the perimeter defense in the second half, only allowing the Camels to hit one three pointer, and forcing fourteen turnovers. After Tonisha Baker hit two free throws to give the Camels their last lead of the game at 49-48 with 10:21 to play, Anna Freeman and Raven Gary responded with back-to-back three pointers to give the Mountaineers a five point lead. Campbell would respond with a 5-0 run of their own to tie the game at 54 with 7:50 to play. However, that would be the final points of the game for the Camels, as the Mountaineers would end the game with a 15-0 run.

The Mountaineers (3-1) were led by a career high from Raven Gary, who finished with 17 points, six assists and four steals. Anna Freeman recorded a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Freeman missed her first free throw of the year, finishing 2/3 from the line. Maryah Sydnor chipped in with 13 points and six rebounds. Appalachian will face Norfolk State on Sunday afternoon.

 

Norfolk State:

Two unheralded underclassmen led the Mountaineers in a come from behind win over Norfolk State on Sunday afternoon. Sophomore Katie Mallow and freshman Farrahn Wood combined to knock down eight three pointers to help Appalachian overcome a thirteen point first half deficit. The hot shooting from the behind the arc came without warning. Coming into the game, the two had only combined for four three pointers in the previous four games. Mallow was second on the team last year with 36 made trifectas in 33 games, with ten of those coming in the WNIT. Wood set a school record by hitting  nine three pointers in a game in high school.

Outside of Mallow and Wood, the Mountaineers (4-1)  suffered early on from another poor shooting performance from the field. The Mountaineers only managed 36% from the floor. For the tournament, the Mountaineers shot 39.5% from the field, much lower than their season mark of 49% coming into the tournament. Four Mountaineers finished the game in double figures, led by Mallow and Courtney Freeman with 15. Wood added 12 points and Anna Freeman scored eleven.

C-Notes: Appalachian State ( RPI 279) will travel next to Xavier (RPI 141)  on Friday Night for a homecoming for senior Kelsey Sharkey. Xavier will host#4 Duke tonight…Chattanooga lost their first game of the season against St Mary’s College on Saturday…Davidson is 1-3, but has played all of their games on the road…Conference play begins this weekend as each team will play at least one conference game within the next eight days.

 

Men’s Basketball 76 Virginia Tech 87

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Pregame:

Virginia Tech is off to hot start with a sparkling 4-0 record and its brand new head coach, James Johnson who replaced the fired Seth Greenberg. No matter how hard he tried, Greenberg could not get his teams to the NCAA tournament often enough. Johnson is somewhat of an unknown to the common basketball fan. He spent the past five seasons at VT as an assistant and was hired to be Clemson’s coach in April before the Hokies lured him back. Johnson spent three years of his career in the Southern conference, one year as an assistant at College of Charleston and two years at Elon.

The Hokies have been impressive on both ends of the court this season. In their four wins over East Tennessee State, Rhode Island, VMI & UNCG, the Hokies have averaged 85 points per game, good enough for second in the ACC. Although Tech has given up close to 70 points on the defensive end, their statistics are impressive. Tech’s opponents are shooting under 40% from the floor, and 21% from three point range.

The Hokies are led by senior guard Erick Green who is lighting it up in his final season. Green is averaging nearly 24 points per game while also dishing out 5.5 assists a game, both numbers which lead the team. Green has contributed eight made three pointers this season, for a team that has already made 42 trifectas on the season.

Appalachian’s defense has been atrocious this season, but it seems they might have found a partial solution against East Carolina. The real question is if Appalachian can put together an entire game of offensive and defensive production. The Mountaineers are playing only seven players in their normal rotation, with only seven players seeing action in every game this season. Nathan Healy has been solid after a rough game against High Point. Healy is shooting 60% from the field, and 46% from three point land. Jay Canty leads the Mountaineers in several categories, including points per game, rebounds and free throws made and attempted. Canty could warm up from three point range, as he has only hit one of his twelve attempts.

The Mountaineers are massive 20.5 point underdogs on the road. We were way off with our guess of what the line would be. We were expecting a double digit line, but nothing as high as twenty points. Virginia Tech has covered in both of their games that were lined this season, as have the Mountaineers. Something will have to give. Appalachian could hang tight in a game that is likely to be lightly attended by fans on Black Friday. As we have mentioned in the past, Appalachian has been good against major conference opponents on the road in the double digit spreads the last two years, covering three of four such games. Virginia Tech is bound to have a rough shooting game sometime in their future, and it could be today. I’ll take the Mountaineers to cover this big spread, as I should have done earlier this week.

UPDATE: In the time it took me to write this article, the line dropped from 20.5 to 19.

Postgame:

Appalachian kept the margin close with Virginia Tech for most of the game before fouls caught up with them in the second half. Virginia Tech led for almost the entire second half, outside of Appalachian tying the score at 50 with 14:57 remaining. It was the game’s ninth and final tie of the game. From that point, Tech went on a 23-10 run over the course of the next ten minutes of game action and never looked back.

The game was decided completely on the free throw line. Virginia Tech was awarded thirty-nine free throw attempts on the afternoon and hit thirty of them, a 77% clip for the day. Appalachian countered with only 21 attempts, knocking down only twelve. The Mountaineers have been solid for a good part of this short season at the free throw line, but when they shoot a lower percentage, they do it in the worst way. Tevin Baskin and Michael Obacha were both 1/4 from the line. Even Nathan Healy missed a rare free throw. The bigger story outside of the poor shooting were the opportunities at the foul line. Even though the Mountaineers were only whistled for seven more fouls than Virginia Tech, the Hokies were able to shoot 18 more free throws. The officials even tried to nail Nathan Healy with two flagrant fouls. The first offense, the officials went to the video monitor to review if the flagrant was warranted, but it was not. On the second offense, Healy chased down a wide open layup and blocked the shot, but came down on the opponents arm on the follow through, which caused the shooter to land awkwardly, but on his feet. That foul was called a flagrant in live action, and the officials went to review the play again, and confirmed call. It was obvious at that point in the game, that the officials did not want Appalachian to win. It was one of the worst calls I have seen in college basketball, especially considering the officials could have changed the call by reviewing the play.

When all was said and done, the Mountaineers held on to cover the spread, and we made the right call. It was fourth cover in five games against opponents from the ACC/Big Ten/C-USA that the Mountaineers covered as double digit road dogs. We have evened up our record at 1-1 on the season and will look to go over .500 on the season next week as the Mountaineers return home against Duquesne. The Dukes have covered twice as underdogs this season while they have been favored twice and won, but did not cover.

Men’s Basketball 72, East Carolina 82

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Pregame:

Appalachian travels to long time stat rival East Carolina tonight in the second game of a three games series with the Pirates. Appalachian and East Carolina agreed to a two and one agreement with Appalachian prior to last season, with Appalachian’s home game in the series being played last year at Time-Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte. East Carolina enters the contest at 3-0, fresh off a comeback win over UNC-Greensboro. The will be the Pirates final home game in a four game homestand to start the season as they hit the road to play Georgia State and Charlotte in the coming week. The Pirates other wins to open the season were against Washington & Lee and Methodist.

Miguel Paul leads a quartet of double digit scorers for the Pirates. Paul did not play in the team’s first two games due to a team suspension, but did score 24 points against UNCG. Paul played his first two seasons of college basketball at Missouri. Maurice Kemp is a lanky post player at 6’8 and 190 pounds. Kemp is a senior who has started all three games on the season and is averaging 18.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. Marshall Guilmette is a 6’10, 240 pound freshman who has averaged 10.7 points and 6.7 rebounds while playing roughly twenty four minutes per contest. Six players on the Pirate roster measure 6’8 or taller on a team that features five seniors and four juniors.

Against High Point and Campbell, the Mountaineers started the game slowly and never held a lead in either contest. Mountaineer opponents are shooting 55% from the field this season and 40% from behind the arc. Despite the Mountaineers averaging seven more rebounds per game, most of that difference has come on the offensive glass, where the Mountaineers have out-rebounded their opponents 47-23. It will be interesting to see what kind of lineup Jason Capel will put together against a much taller team in East Carolina. Is it possible there is a Brian Okam sighting tonight?

On to our in season game of picking a Vegas winner. This is the first game for Appalachian that has been lined this season, despite the Campbell game sneaking in as a pick’em. East Carolina was an 11.5 point favorite against UNCG, but failed to cover despite the come from behind win. Last year, Appalachian was 1.5 point favorite against ECU, but never came close to winning the game. East Carolina is a 14.5 point favorite tonight. Last year, Appalachian was really good on the road covering double digit spreads at the beginning of the season, with covers at Minnesota and North Carolina. However, Appalachian has been trounced by two lesser teams than East Carolina this season and I cannot become a believer in this team until I see it. The smart play goes to East Carolina covering the 14.5 points.

Postgame:

I am not going to pretend that I know alot about this game. Due to home women’s game, I was unable to listen to any radio or video of the game, so this will be a short recap.

Appalachian played much better than expected against what appears to be a better East Carolina team. Appalachian started quickly taking an early lead, that they would relinquish and never receover from. On several occasions throughout the first half, the Mountaineers were able to cut the deficit to two points, but were not able to tie the game or take the lead. Appalachian cut the lead to three points late in the second half, but could not get a defensive stop at the right time.

We called on senior leadership from Nathan Healy, and he has responded. After going scoreless against High Point. Healy has averaged 21 points and 8 rebounds his last two games. Jay Canty added a career high 25 points and grabbed five rebounds and added five assists. Canty was 9/11 from the free throw line. As a team Appalachian was 17/20 from the line.

Overall, six players scored all of the Mountaineer points. The same six players played 93% of the minutes. Michael Obacha started, only played eight minutes, but fouled out without taking a shot. Chris Burgess also saw his minutes decline severely on what appeared to be a coaches decision. Burgess was not in foul trouble, nor did he turn the ball over in his 14 minutes of play. Tevin Baskin grabbed ten rebounds in only 27 minutes of play and Jamaal Trice added ten points in 34 minutes off the bench. Both Baskin and Trice fouled out. Tab Hamilton shot poorly once again, managing one made basket on eight attempts. Hamilton is shooting 30% from two point range on the season. Brian Okam didnt leave bench.

Unfurtunately, I made the wrong call on the point spread. I overlooked Appalachian’s decent record in the last two seasons as a double digit road dog. The Mountaineers have now covered three of their last four games in that situation. Sounds like my pick is already made for Friday afternoon’s game against Virginia Tech. However, based on the UNCG-VT game from Monday Night, its possible we may not see a large spread. It is interesting that Appalachian and Greensboro will have had three common opponents this early in the season. Greensboro and Appalachian have both covered against East Carolina. Greensboro did not cover +5 against Virginia Tech, but it was most likely a bad overreaction line from the books. If I had to guess, Virginia Tech will be favored by 9.5, but would not be surprised to see a spread as high as 11.5. Regardless, we fall to 0-1 on the season, and hopefully the Mountaineers can put together two well played games in a row.

Women’s Basketball 84, Gardner-Webb 43

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Pregame:

The Mountaineer women (1-1) continue their season with their second home game this evening against Big South opponent Gardner-Webb. The Mountaineers fell in a heartbreaker to Virginia Tech six days ago in Blacksburg. Appalachian is led by senior Anna Freeman who is averaging 27 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Anna is also a perfect 12/12 from the free throw line this season. Courtney Freeman is second on the team in scoring with 16.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest. The Mountaineers have owned Gardner-Webb in the past, and this game also looks to get ugly after the disappointing loss last week.

Gardner-Webb will be playing its second road game of the season after falling to UNC-Greensboro this past weekend. The Runnin’ Bulldogs w0n their first three games of the season, all at home, over Lipscomb, Tennessee Temple and Montreat, by at least twenty points or more in each game. Against UNCG, both teams shot under 33% from the field, under 15% from three point range, and under 55% from the foul line. The two teams also combined for 56 turnovers. Catrina Green led Gardner-Webb with 20 points and 17 rebounds in the loss. On the season, Green is averaging a double-double, with 13 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. Jessica Heilig adds 10.8 points and 4 rebounds per game while Jasmine Dale pours in 11.5 points per game.



Postgame:

As we imagined, Appalachian dominated Gardner-Webb from the start. Gardner-Webb scored the first point of the game, and it was their only lead as Appalachian cruised to a 84-43 win. The Mountaineers had Gardner-Webb doubled up for most of the second half before the final margin was decided. Gardner-Webb shot poorly throughout the night and could not keep up the with the pace the Mountaineers forced. Gardner-Webb had 34 turnovers of the night, with Appalachian scoring 41 points off of those mistakes. Appalachian also dominated in the paint, with a 54-26 edge.

The Mountaineers were led by the Freeman duo, Anna and Courtney who combined to score 49 points on the night. Courtney led all scored with 26 points, leaving her only 71 points away from 1,000 point mark for her career. At her current pace, Courtney could score her 1000th point in the Mountaineers next home game on December 3rd against Georgia Southern. Anna Freeman added 23 points and continued her ways of filling up the stat sheet, adding ten rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks. Anna hit all four of her free throw attempts to remain a perfect 16/16 on the year. Anna is also on pace this year to score her 2,000th point late in the season. At her current pace, she would need to average 22.3 points per game to score her 2,000th point in the first game of the conference tournament. Anna is currently averaging 25.7 points per contest.

 

Men’s Basketball 82, Campbell 101

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Appalachian (1-1) travels to Big South Opponent Campbell (1-1) in its first road game of the season. Last year, Appalachian slipped by the Camels at home in a close game, winning 77-74. The Mountaineers are coming off an ugly loss at home to High Point. The on court energy was non-existent against the Panthers, as High Point made a point to embarrass the Mountaineers. High Point was projected to finish in fourth place in Big South, while Campbell has been tabbed as the Big South favorite in their division.

Darren White and Trey Freeman are all conferfence selections for the Camels. White scored twenty or more points ten times last season while also hitting double digits in twenty-eight games. White was second on the team at 16.8 points per game. White began his college career at James Madison before transferring to Midland Junior College, where he played with Mountaineer guard Jamaal Trice. White recorded a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds in the Camels last outing against Northwestern State. Freeman led all Big South freshman in scoring at 13.9 points per game and was named the Big South Conference Freshman of the Year. Freeman also led the conference in foul shooting at 87%, which was also good enough for 26th nationally.

Darian Hooker is another Camel that the Mountaineers will need to keep a close eye one. Hooker led Campbell in scoring last year at 17.9 points per game. Hooker is deadly from three point range, shooting 46% from long distance last year, after shooting 38% during his freshman season.

Appalachian will need to rebound from its first loss of the season and simply put it behind them. The Mountaineers will need better games from their seniors. Nathan Healy and Jamaal Trice need to show some leadership and will this team to a better effort, at minimum. Jay Canty cannot do this all by himself. Another player is going to have to emerge as a second scoring threat before Mike Neal returns from suspension. Chris Burgess had a nice game against High Point, but is still very rough around the edges.

It does not appear we will get a spread for this game. Campbell only garnered two lines last year, in the massive BracketBuster event against Northwestern State and in the first game of their conference tournament against Winthrop. Both of those lines were a point or less and Campbell lost on the court and on the books in both games. Most certainly, we can begin our picks next week with East Carolina and Virginia Tech. I fully expect the Mountaineers to be double digit underdogs in both games.

Postgame:

Appalachian started the game with turnovers on its first three possessions and Campbell never looked back as they never trailed in the game. The story of the game was red hot shooting percentage from the Camels, who shot 66.7% from the field for the game. Essentially, that is making two of every three shots taken. The Camels ended the game with 42 made field goals, with twenty-six of those baskets being assisted. The Camels also enjoyed a 54-34 advantage in the paint and a 23-0 edge on fast breaks.

Darren White was magnificent for the Camels. White poured in a career high 36 points while snagging seven rebounds. Darian Hooker added 17 points and five assists while Reco McCarter added thirteen points for the Camels.

We talked about wanting to see more from the seniors and they responded. Nathan Healy scored 18 points on 7/9 shooting including two three pointers while grabbing six rebounds. Jamaal Trice scored 14 points off the bench, but did manage to play 36 minutes in the game. Trice added seven assists, but the rest of the Mountaineers could only manage seven assists. Tevin Baskin also came off the bench to play 28 minutes and scored 18 points and added seven rebounds. Tab Hamilton quietly scored 18 points himself, hitting a trio of three pointers.

Adding to the Campbell’s hot shooting, Appalachian played poor defense in transition and in the half court. That is evidenced by the Camels scoring over half of their points in the paint. The Mountaineers have no true inside presence, so we may see more of that in the future. Michael Obacha has been thrown in the fire it will take him some time. It is not Obacha’s fault though. Brian Okam seems to get in his own way more than anything. Okam did not see the floor against Campbell. Chris Burgess came back down to earth after his best performance of the season against High Point. Burgess played 23 minutes, turning the ball over five times and only recording one assist and scoring two points. Burgess and the Mountaineers must get into an offense that requires more passing of the ball, and working as a team, rather than a dribbling contest. On a couple occasions, Burgess left his feet as a passer, and that does not work in the college game when you are only 5’8″.

Appalachian has now begun its season with two double digit lopsided losses to Big South teams. The Mountaineers only win is over a NAIA Montreat. At this rate, it may be a while before Appalachian records its first Division I win of the season. It appears this entire season will come down to the SoCon Tourney in March. The Mountaineers will have to be playing their best basketball of the season at that point.

Women’s Basketball 68, Virginia Tech 71

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Pregame:

Appalachian State will look for an upset in their first road game of the season tonight versus Virginia Tech. The Mountaineers and the Hokies are both playing their second game of the season, as Appalachian dominated Lees-McRae while the Hokies fell at home to Old Dominion on Friday. The Hokies return four starters from a team that went 7-23 last season and finished tenth in the ACC. The Hokies were picked to finish eleventh this season while the Mountaineers were tabbed the preseason favorite in the Southern Conference.

The Hokie roster includes four seniors, highlighted by Alyssa Fenyn who has started 79 of her 91 career games. Fenyn led the team in assists last year with 88 while averaging 8.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. Aerial Wilson led the Hokies in minutes played last year, averaging 35 minutes a contest while averaging 12.1 points per game. Wilson scored two points in the season opener.

The Hokies and Mountaineers have had a few common opponents over the last couple years. Last year, the Hokies fell to NC State last year at home, while the Mountaineers defeated the Wolfpack in the WNIT in Raleigh. Both Appalachian and Virginia Tech lost to Virginia twice last year. Two seaons ago, Virginia Tech notched a seven point win over Elon, while the Mountaineers defeated Elon by an average of 23 points per game in three games. The Hokies also lost twice to Wake Forest two seasons ago, while the Mountaineers defeated the Deacons in Winston Salem.

Postgame:

A very physical game finished in heartbreaking fashion for the Mountaineers. Appalachian had the ball with a chance to tie on the game’s final possession and Raven Gary’s layup attempt rolled off the rim with just under five seconds remaining. Virginia Tech hit a free throw and intentionally missed the second free throw to provide the final margin.

Virginia Tech led the game early before the Mountaineers went on a 12-0 run midway through the first half to push their lead out to six points. The Hokies battled back slowly with three point shooting to draw within three points at halftime. The Mountaineers shot 52% in the first half along with hitting six of seven free throws. The Hokies did not get to the foul line in the first half.

The second half saw Virginia Tech run out to their biggest lead of the game at seven points just five minutes into the final frame. The Mountaineers forced Tech into several fouls as they slowly clawed back throughout the entire second half. Five Hokies finished with three fouls and another finished with four. Appalachian was brilliant from the free throw line in the second half, nailing fourteen of their sixteen attempts.

Appalachian could not find answer for Tech’s set plays. The Hokies did a great job of cutting to the baseline after dribbling out of the corner and finding an open shooter time and time again. Four Hokies finished in double figures with Alysssa Fenyn leading with 13 points. Monet Tellier netted 12 points, including a trio of three pointers. Conversely, the Hokies simply could not stop Anna Freeman, who finished with a career high 36 points, adding 8 rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and two steals. Freeman hit six of her eleven three points attempts, falling just one three pointer shy of tying a school record. Courtney Freeman added 11 points and nine rebounds.

The game was a homecoming of sorts for Maryah Sydnor, who grew up in nearby Radford, Va. Sydnor was perhaps nervous playing in front of a swarm of friends and family which included members of her high school basketball team. Sydnor played twenty three minutes recording a steal and two points. On any other night, this Appalachian team would have handled Tech easily with better defense, and another scoring threat outside of the Freeman duo.

High Point 86, Men’s Basketball 64

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Pregame:

Appalachian Men’s basketball should get its first true test tonight against the High Point Panthers. The Mountaineers defeated the Panthers in their last meeting in 2011. High Point is flying high after a big win over cross town rival UNC-Greensboro, who was picked to finish first in the SoCon North. High Point led by as many as nineteen points before holding off a rally from the Spartans. High Point is making their first trip on the road this season.

It is highly unlikely a spread will come out for this game. High Point only had a line in three games last season, and two of those games were in their conference tournament, which oddsmakers love. We are hopeful we can get a line up for the Campbell game, but if not, East Carolina will certainly have a line. The RPI is a little funky this early in the season, because it is based solely on wins and losses, which neither team has many of. High Point bolted up to 41 with their win. Appalachian is currently ranked 256, with their win over Montreat not counting as it was outside of the Division I.

Post Game:

Appalachian could not overcome a High Point team that could not miss the basket on Tuesday night. The Panthers built a 22 point halftime lead and cruised in the second half to 86-64 win. High Point shot 57% for the game while the Mountaineers countered with 37.5% shooting. The Mountaineers assisted on only five made baskets on the night while turning the ball over 16 times.

Jay Canty and Chris Burgess were the lone bright spots for the Mountaineers. Burgess made six of his nine shots for sixteen points but did not record an assist while turning the ball over four times. Jay Canty scored 23 points and grabbed five rebounds. Nathan Healy had perhaps his worst game as a Mountaineer as he missed all five of his shots, did not score and committed three turnovers. Tab Hamilton never got into the flow of the game. Michael Obacha was a surprise starter in place of Brian Okam. Tevin Baskin recorded all four of the Mountaineer steals in only 17 minutes of play, and also chipped in with ten points.

There is not much you can do when another team comes into your gym and shoots like High Point did. However, the Mountaineers were never in this game from the start. There was no energy and no flow to the game. The Mountaineers looked like a group of individuals, compared to an actual team that was working together. I expect Jason Capel to juggle the starting lineup until he finds something he likes, but by then it may be too late. Fans are already calling for his job and if he wants to keep it, this team must show some signs of playing together.