Appalachian State vs Georgia State – Odds & Picks for Sun Belt Championship Game
- The East No. 4 seed Appalachian State Mountaineers (16-11, 7-8 Sun Belt) take on the East No. 1 seed Georgia State Panthers (16-5, 8-4 Sun Belt) in the Sun Belt Tournament Championship on Monday, March 8
- The Mountaineers went 2-1 against the Panthers during the regular season
- Read below for odds, analysis, and best bet for this matchup
The East No. 4 seed Appalachian State Mountaineers (16-11, 7-8 Sun Belt), who have already knocked out West No. 1 seed Texas State and East No. 2 seed Coastal Carolina, takes on the East No. 1 seed Georgia State Panthers (16-5, 8-4 Sun Belt) in the Sun Belt Tournament championship game on Monday, March 8.
Tip is set for 6:00 pm ET at the Pensacola Bay Center. The Panthers are sizable favorites.
Appalachian State vs Georgia State Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appalachian State | +7 (-110) | +240 | Ov 135.5 (-110) |
| Georgia State | -7 (-110) | -295 | Un 135.5 (-110) |
Odds as of March 8.
App State needed overtime to eliminate the Chants Sunday in the semifinals. Meanwhile, pre-tourney favorite Georgia State knocked out dangerous Louisiana 84-73 in the semis. The programs is now on the doorstep of its third straight NCAA Tournament appearance and fourth trip to the Big Dance in the last six seasons (that the tourney has been held).
Climbing the Mountain
Junior guard Adrian Delph led App State with a game-high 20 points against Coastal. The 6-foot-3 Kings Mountain, North Carolina product knocked down 6-of-12 from three-point range. Senior Michael Almonacy scored 19 points and the team’s leading scorer, Justin Forrest, added 13 in the three-point win.
Great season for the Chants as they fall short in overtime pic.twitter.com/2owzsfIYhF
— CCU Men's Basketball (@CoastalMBB) March 8, 2021
Those three players, along with Donovan Gregory, all average in double-figures for the Black and Gold coming in. Gregory is also averaging a team-best 5.8 rebounds and had a team-high 49 steals this season. Almonacy is the team leader in assists, averaging 2.9 helpers per game.
App State is holding opponents to 64.2 point per game, which is second-best in the league. The Mountaineers have held 12 team to under 65 points this season, including two of thee opponents in their current tourney run. Dustin Kerns’ squad is also a disciplined one, averaging just 13.7 fouls per game. That’s fifth-best in the country.
Getting to this point is relatively uncharted territory for App State. The program is making its its first ever appearance in the Sun Belt title game since joining the league in the 2014-15 season. The Mountaineers last appeared in a conference championship game during the 2010 Southern Conference Tournament (lost to Wofford 56-51), while he Mountaineers have only made two appearances in the NCAA Tournament (1979, 2000). So, the only postseason experience this group can draw from is really its current three-wins-in-three-days run.
Been There, Done That
On the flip side, getting to this point has become the norm for Georgia State. The team’s leading scorer, Corey Allen (15.2 PPG) had a game-high 21 points in the 11-point win over the Ragin’ Cajuns Sunday.
🔥🔥🔥 #LightItBlue | @_sbca5 pic.twitter.com/51euxqI4my
— GSU Men's Basketball (@GSU_MBasketball) March 8, 2021
The Panthers never trailed on a hot-shooting night in which they went 52.6% from the field in the first half, including 6-of-10 from three-point range. Georgia State finished 28-for-62 shooting (45.2%) overall.
Five players average in double-figures for Rob Lanier’s club. Allen is joined by Justin Roberts (13.3 points per game), Kane Williams (12.7 points per game), Eliel Nsoseme (11.9 points per game), and Jalen Thomas (10.5 points per game). Allen is shooting 42.7% on three-pointers, which leads the Sun Belt. Meantime, Nsoseme is one of only three players in the league averaging double figures in rebounding, ranking third at 10.1 boards per game.
As you might guess with all that scoring, the Panthers are averaging 80.7 points and shooting 47.2% from the field, both of which are tops in the Sun Belt. While App State’s defense is solid, it allowed an average of 72.3 points per game to Georgia State in its three meetings with the Panthers this season.
The Matchup
As noted above, App State did knock off Georgia State twice in three games this season. The Mountaineers won twice on their home court, topping the Panthers 80-71 on Jan. 22 and 74-61 on Jan. 23. Then, Georgia State won on its homecourt in Atlanta on Feb. 23 by an 85-71 score.
Georgia State leads the all-time series 8-7 and this is the first time the two teams have met in the Sun Belt Tournament.
Which team will prevail Monday? App State is on a great run, has balanced scoring, and a stout defense. But Georgia State has an explosive offense and, more importantly, postseason experience it will be able to draw from in Pensacola. I love the Panthers in this spot.
The pick: Georgia State -7 (-110)
Blair Johnson is a veteran journalist and seasoned sports content creator. He has been writing and producing content as long as he can remember, with such familiar names as CNN, NFL Media and Yahoo. Blair currently lives and works in the greater Los Angeles area.
