Men's Basketball Falls To League Leading App State On Road

BOONE, N.C. -- Tre'Von Spillers scored 18 points and had 16 rebounds to lead four in double figures as App State defeated ODU 89-64 on Wednesday night at the Holmes Convocation Center.
 
"We ran into a buzz saw tonight. A very good team that played extremely well with something important on the line, clinching the regular season. They played like a team hungry for more. We weren't competitive enough and hopefully we don't see that again. In the second half, we regrouped, battled and competed better but App State was well in the lead," said ODU Interim Head Coach Kieran Donohue.
 
It was a defensive struggle out the start as both teams missed a combined 10 shots to start. An Imo Essien jumper was the first bucket of the night for ODU to trail 4-2 at 16:37. App State ripped off the next 15 points to lead 19-2 after a 3-pointer from Christopher Mantis.
 
That lead grew to as much as 25 points as a Spillers layup with 18 seconds left in the half were the final points of the half that gave App State (25-5, 15-2) a 51-26 lead at intermission.
 
In the second half, the Monarchs used a 15-4 run in a three-minute span starting with an R.J. Blakney 3-pointer with 11:52 left for a 65-42 deficit. Tyrone Williams finished the run with a 3-pointer with nine minutes left to cut the App State lead to 69-54.
 
App State responded with an 11-0 run as a Xavion Brown dunk gave the Mountaineers an 80-54 lead with 6:12 remaining.
 
ODU scored the next seven points as a Jason Wade 3-pointer  made the score 84-63 with 2:16 left.
 
Chaunce Jenkins and Williams were the leading scorers with 15 points apiece for ODU (7-23, 3-14), while Blakney added 11. Essien was next with eight, followed by Bryce Baker with seven.
 
For the night, ODU was 23-of-61 (37.7%) from the floor, 11-of-23 (47.8%) from 3-point range and 7-of-10 (70%) from the line. In the second half, the Monarchs hit 13-of-31 from the floor (41.9%), 6-of-12 from 3-point range (50%) and 6-of-9 from the line (66.7%). Williams was the leading rebounder with five, while Jenkins and Baker had four apiece. Jason Wade and Essien had three assists each.
 
Joining Spillers in double digits for App State were Mantis with 12 points coming off the bench, Donovan Gregory and Terence Harcum added 11 points each.
 
App State has won 14 straight at home and the last team to beat them in the Holmes Convocation Center, was ODU winning 74-63 on Feb. 18, 2023.
 
ODU closes the regular season on Friday night at Georgia Southern for a 7 p.m. tip.