CONWAY, S.C. – The Coastal Carolina University men's basketball program is back home and will host Appalachian State on Thursday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m. ET, and Old Dominion on Saturday, Jan. 13 at 3:30 p.m. ET. Saturday's action with ODU is part of a double-header as the CCU women's team will host Marshall at 1 p.m. ET.
LAST TIME OUT
CCU fell at Louisiana 85-77. Four Chants scored in double-digits led by
Kylan Blackmon with 17 points.
Jon Sanders added 15 along with five assists, while
John Ojiako added his eighth double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Jimmy Nichols also scored 12 points.
THE SERIES
vs. Appalachian State
CCU and App State began playing back in 2017 when the Chants joined the Sun Belt Conference. Since that time, the programs have met 14 times on the hardcourt, with the Mountaineers winning 10 of those.
CCU is 3-3 when facing the Mountaineers in Conway, and that includes a 93-84 overtime victory last season. That win broke an App State five-game winning streak in the series.
vs. Old Dominion
Old Dominion leads this short series 3-1 with the teams splitting two games last season with each team winning on the other's home court.
CCU defeated the Monarchs 67-66 last season with the Chants converting on three free throws with 1.4 seconds left in the game. ODU returned the favor in the HTC Center just two weeks later with two free throws with 1.3 seconds left for a 60-59 win.
ABOUT THE CHANTS
CCU enters the game with a 4-10 record overall and 1-2 in Sun Belt Conference action.
Blackmon's 13.3 points per game scoring average leads the Chants, while true freshman
Jacob Meyer is scoring at a 12.6 points per game clip.
Ojiako has raised his average to 12.6 points per game, but continues to lead the conference and is fourth nationally in rebounding averaging 10.4 per game. He also is second in the conference and 12th in the nation in double-doubles with eight.
ABOUT APPALACHIAN STATE
The Mountaineers were picked to finish second in the preseason coaches' poll, and after three conference games App is tied for third just one game out of first.
App's 11-14 record includes and eight game winning streak and winners of 10 of its last 12 games. They are 2-1 in conference action coming off a close 66-62 road loss at Troy.
Donovan Gregory averages 13.6 points per game and is shooting 56.1 percent from the field and 83.9 percent at the free throw line. Tre'Von Spillers is shooting 63.8 percent from the field while averaging 13.3 points per game. He leads the Mountaineers in rebounding averaging 8.1 per game and has 24 blocked shots.
ABOUT OLD DOMINION
ODU enters this week of action 4-11 overall and 0-3 in conference play and have one win in its last eight games.
ODU's Vasean Allette is one of the top scorers in the Sun Belt averaging 16.7 points per game, while Chaunce Jenkins is not far behind averaging 15.9 points per game. Jenkins has a team-high 24 three-point field goals and leads the team with 36 assists and 13 blocked shots.
Tyrone Williams averages 12.4 points per game and is the team's top rebounder averaging 6.1 per game.
CCU games with Appalachian State and Old Dominion can be heard on WRNN Hot Talk 99.5 FM and can be watched live on ESPN+. Links for both along with live stats can be found at www.GoCCUSports.com.
For complete coverage of CCU men's basketball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalMBB (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram) or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at goccusports.com.
