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App Looks To Rebound From Duke Drubbing

Appalachian State will travel to in-state foe Charlotte on Monday for the 37th meeting in program history. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. Courtesy: Mark Dolejs via App State Athletics
Appalachian State will travel to in-state foe Charlotte on Monday for the 37th meeting in program history. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. Courtesy: Mark Dolejs via App State Athletics

Four-straight threes and a 12-2 run to open the game ended up dooming Appalachian State University basketball in a 93-58 loss to No. 6 Duke on Saturday inside Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The Mountaineers (2-3) were outrebounded by the Blue Devils (6-1) 45-30, including 17-12 on the offensive glass – generating 16 second-chance points. It marked the first game of the season that Appalachian was outrebounded by its opponent. Duke also turned a season-high 18 Appalachian turnovers into 24 points.

App State was led by freshman Kelvin Robinson’s (Little Rock, Ark./Episcopal) 12 points and five rebounds. Robinson’s 12 points tied a season- and career-high. The true freshman nailed a season-high three 3-pointers and finished a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. He also shot 3-of-4 from the foul line.

Griffin Kinney was the other lone Mountaineer to tally double-digits with 11 points on the afternoon. Kinney finished 5-for-8 from the field. Offensively, Jake Babic finished with a team-high five assists. 

Hitting the glass for Appalachian State was freshman Isaac Johnson who tied for a team-high five boards with Robinson. Johnson was also one of three eight-point scorers for the Apps, joined by Ronshad Shabazz and Tyrell Johnson.

After racing out to a 12-2 lead in the opening moments of the contest, Appalachian battled back to within six at 14-8 aided by back-to-back buckets from T. Johnson and Kinney. 

The Mountaineers stayed within 10 points of the Blue Devils throughout the first half of the opening period, but Duke would slowly and methodically grow its lead to a 21-point advantage heading into the break.

Without missing a beat from the first half, the Blue Devils engineered a 9-0 run in the opening 2:12 of the second half – forcing a Mountaineer timeout. 

The Duke lead would balloon to as many as 40 points in the second half, 81-41, with 9:09 left. From there, Robinson would score 11-straight points for the Black and Gold to help cut the deficit to 32, but the Mountaineers would fall to the Blue Devils 93-58.

Notes: Appalachian State’s streak of four-straight games outrebounding its opponent was snapped … Kelvin Robinson scored in double-figures for the second time in his career (scored 12 points at Tennessee – Nov. 15) … Robinson hit a career-high three 3-pointers … Kinney’s five field goals were a season-high.

Moving On To Charlotte

Appalachian State University men’s basketball will look to rebound when it travels to in-state foe Charlotte on Monday. The Mountaineers will tipoff with the 49ers at 7 p.m. from Halten Arena.

Monday’s contest can be heard live locally on WATA 1450 AM in Boone and Blowing Rock. It will also be carried on Appalachian State’s flagship station, WKBC 97.3 FM, as well as, WZGV 730 AM, WCOG 1320 AM, and online/worldwide on appstatesports.com and via the TuneIn app.

LAST TIME OUT
• Appalachian State dropped its third game of the season at Duke on Nov. 26.

• The Mountaineers tried to weather an early 12-2 run by the Blue Devils – cutting the deficit to just six points, but Duke extended its lead with points off turnovers and second-chance points.

• Duke scored 24 points off of 18 Mountaineer turnovers and produced 16 points off of 17 offensive rebounds.

• The Mountaineers were led by freshman Kelvin Robinson who finished with a team-high 12 points to match a career high.

• Griffin Kinney notched a season-high five goals in the loss.

SERIES HISTORY
• Monday’s matchup will be the 37th all-time meeting between Appalachian State and Charlotte.

• The 49ers lead the all-time series over the Mountaineers, 23-13. The Niners are on a three-game winning streak in the series.

• Houston Fancher (currently an assistant on Mark Price’s staff) served as head coach of Appalachian State from 2000-09 with a 137-136 (.502). App State won three regular season Southern Conference titles under Fancher (2003, 2007, 2008).

• The last win against the 49ers came in a 87-84 win in double-overtime on Nov. 19, 2008.

SCOUTING THE 49ERS
• Charlotte enters tonight’s contest with a 3-2 record and most recently coming off of 22-point loss to Davidson on the road on Saturday.

• The Niners boast three double-digit scoring threats so far on the young season. 

• Jon Davis leads the way (20.6 ppg), while Braxton Ogbueze (15.8 ppg) and Andrien White (12.6) round out the top three.

• The 49ers have scored 100+ points three of its five games this season and own a 2-1 record when scoring 100+ points.

• One of the Mountaineers’ strengths is the 49ers weakness. Charlotte carries a -7.2 rebounding margin this season.

• Despite the rebounding margin, Charlotte commits just 11.0 turnovers per game and has a 1.3 assist/turnover ratio. Charlotte also boasts a +5.0 turnover margin.

WHAT’S NEXT
• Following their game at Charlotte on Monday, the Mountaineers will return for consecutive home games against Western Carolina (Dec. 3) and Montreat (Dec. 11).