Appalachian State Mountaineers vs Georgia State Panthers Prediction, 1/8/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Appalachian State Mountaineers vs Georgia State Panthers

Date: Thursday, January 8, 2026

Location: GSU Convocation Center in Atlanta, GA

TV: ESPN+

The Georgia State Panthers (5-11) will compete against the Appalachian State Mountaineers (9-7) at GSU Convocation Center on Thursday.

The Appalachian State Mountaineers faced Marshall and ended up losing by a score of 88-81 in their last contest. Appalachian State wrapped up the contest having earned a 47.5% FG percentage (28 out of 59) and buried 8 out of their 23 3-point attempts. From the charity stripe, the Mountaineers buried 17 of 31 shots for a rate of 54.8%. With regard to rebounding, they earned 33 with 11 of them being offensive. They also recorded 12 assists for the matchup as well as forcing the other team into 8 turnovers and earning 4 steals. In the matter of defense, Appalachian State allowed the other team to shoot 52.7% from the floor on 29 out of 55 shooting. Marshall distributed 20 assists and had 4 steals in the game. Moreover, Marshall grabbed 28 rebounds (4 offensive, 24 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Marshall finished the game shooting 72.0% when shooting free throws by converting 18 of their 25 tries. They made 12 out of their 24 attempts from three-point range. When talking about personal fouls, the Mountaineers walked away with 17 while Marshall totaled 25 personal fouls.

Michael Marcus Jr. is a player who had an impact in this contest. He finished with 21 points on 7 out of 14 shooting. He played 34 minutes and also pulled down 6 rebounds. He shot 50.0% from the floor but wasn't able to get a dime.

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Appalachian State comes into this one with a record of 9-7 this year. They cough up possession 10.4 times per contest and as a group are committing 17.0 fouls every game. As a team, Appalachian State is snagging 38.8 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 213 dimes for the year, which ranks 202nd in college in terms of passing. The Mountaineers are connecting on 31.5% on 3-pointers (125 of 397) and 60.4% from the free throw line. They average 74.4 pts per contest (245th in D-1) while hitting 46.0% from the field.

On the defensive end, the Mountaineers are forcing 10.5 turnovers per game and they draw 19.4 personal fouls. They give up 30.4% on 3-pointers and they rank 60th in college in opponents PPG (67.8). The Mountaineers are allowing a field goal percentage of 39.5% (367 of 929) and they concede 35.1 rebounds per game as a unit. They are ranked 189th in the country in giving up assists to the opposition with 202 surrendered this season.

In their last game, the Georgia State Panthers walked away with a victory by a final of 89-71 against Coastal Carolina. Regarding rebounding, Georgia State allowed Coastal Carolina to get 35 in total (14 offensive). They finished shooting 31.0% from 3-point land by connecting on 9 out of 29 and finished the contest at 14 of 17 at the free throw line (82.4%). The Panthers permitted Coastal Carolina to bury 24 of their 61 attempts from the field which had them shooting 39.3% in this contest. Overall, the Panthers walked away from this one shooting 29 for 59 from the floor which gave them a rate of 49.2%. In terms of three-point attempts, Georgia State buried 17 of 30 attempts (56.7%). They were able to knock down 14 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 100.0%. Coastal Carolina committed 14 personal fouls in this matchup which got the Panthers to the charity stripe for a total of 14 tries. They turned the ball over 6 times, while earning 6 steals for the matchup. The Panthers snagged 21 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive rebounds for a total of 29 for this contest.

Malachi Brown ended up being important for the Panthers for this game. He made 8 of 14 in the matchup for a field goal percentage of 57.1%, and tallied 4 rebounds. He racked up 23 points in his 32 mins of playing time and totaled 3 assists in this game.

Georgia State has a win-loss record of 5-11 so far this season. When it comes to executing on offense, the Panthers are hitting on 38.3% from the floor, which is 362nd in the country. Georgia State has scored 1,134 points so far this season (70.9 per game) and they collect 36.1 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 11.8 times per game (329th in college) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 12.3 times per contest. The Panthers are responsible for committing 19.1 fouls per game and they go 78.5% from the charity stripe.

The Georgia State defense gives up 35.3% on shots from distance (133 of 377) and opponents are knocking down 68.9% of their free throw shots. They concede 13.6 dimes and 39.3 boards on a nightly basis, which is ranked 211th and 344th in the nation. The Panthers on the defensive end are ranked 254th in Division 1 in points per game surrendered with 76.4. They are able to force 12.2 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 43.4% from the field (177th in D-1).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Appalachian State

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