App State men’s basketball lost to Arkansas State Thursday in a road clash between two of the Sun Belt’s top teams by a score of 65-55.
Junior guard Alonzo Dodd, junior guard Dior Conners, senior forward Jalil Beaubrun, redshirt senior guard Myles Tate and graduate student forward CJ Huntley started the game for the Mountaineers.
Arkansas State got on the board with a basket in their first possession, but Huntley scored the first for the Mountaineers shortly after.
The Black and Gold were struggling with their post defense, allowing 10 points inside of the paint in the first four minutes.
Beaubrun led the way for the App State offense early into the first half with 12 points and he gave the Mountaineers their first lead.
Arkansas State connected with their first three-pointers of the game and grabbed the lead right back. Tate shortly got on the board with his first points of the game.
Beaubrun continued to carry the Mountaineers offensively with 14 first-half points compared to 9 points from the rest of the team. The two teams went into the locker room with Arkansas State holding a 30-25 lead.
The Red Wolves hit 2 three-pointers out of halftime and head coach Dustin Kerns was forced to call an early timeout.
Conners, a usually reliable three-point shooter, air-balled from behind the arc and the deficit was growing. Arkansas State started the second half on an 8-0 run.
App State made their first three-pointer after missing 15 consecutive shots from deep. The Black and Gold were on a 9-0 run, and Arkansas State called a timeout.
App State cut it to just 1 with another three from Huntley, now leading the team with 18 points.
Huntley got his 20th point of the game, but Arkansas State pushed the lead out to 5. Red Wolves guard Joseph Pinion hit a three to extend the lead to 8, and it looked like they were pulling away.
App State had to play the foul game from there, and couldn’t pull any closer, and the game ended with Arkansas State winning 65-55.
Huntley led the Mountaineers in scoring with 22, and Beaubrun had a season-high 19.