A 3-point barrage led by six treys by freshman Josh Hill propelled the Arkansas State men’s basketball team to a dominant 97-67 win over Coastal Carolina in the Sun Belt Conference opener inside First National Bank Arena.
A-State (10-3, 1-0 SBC) blistered the Chanticleers (6-6, 0-1) from beyond the arc, making 16 of 30 attempts for a 53.3-percent clip against what entered the day as the top 3-point defense nationally. The Red Wolves remained unbeaten at home, improving to 7-0 in The Bank, while running their home winning streak to 10 games dating back to last season – the longest since an 11-game run in 2016-17.
The Red Wolves shot a season-high 55 percent on 33-of-60 from the field, while going 15-of-19 (78.9 percent) at the free-throw line. A-State had 20 assists on those 33 field goals, while only committing a season-low five turnovers.
Coastal Carolina shot 36.4 percent (24-66) from the field and made just 6-of-21 (28.6 percent) from deep. Jordan Battle led the Chanticleers with 20 points while Colin Granger (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Denzel Hines (13 points, 10 rebounds) had double-doubles.
Hill led the way with a career-best 26 points on nine made field goals – six from deep – in under 16 minutes of reserve action. The 6-11 forward’s total is the most scored by an A-State freshman since Brandon Reed’s 30-point outing on Feb. 20, 2010.
Joseph Pinion added 19 points on four treys with five rebounds and three steals, while Taryn Todd had 13 with five boards and six assists. Derrian Ford did not miss a shot attempt en route to 11 points in his return to the starting lineup. Terrance Ford Jr. was stellar at the point in reserve, dishing out a career-high 11 assists to just one turnover.
After Coastal scored the game’s first four points, it went cold from the field, missing 11 shots in a row. During that stretch, A-State heated up to go on an 18-2 run capped by Hill’s first trey with 10:41 left in the half. The Laurel, Md., native tallied 18 of his points in the first half in just under seven minutes.
The Red Wolves led by as much as 31 in the opening 20 minutes, with Pinion drilling a three to end the half. A-State ended the period on a 14-2 run to lead 53-22 – its fewest points allowed in a half this season.
A-State led by as much as 36 in the second half on a pair of foul shots by Pinion, and then Coastal pulled back within 30 with a 7-0 run. Jacob St. Clair sank a deep three inside the final 15 seconds for his first collegiate score, making it 97-64 before Henry Abraham ended the contest with a three before the buzzer.
NEXT UP
Arkansas State returns to action after the turn of the new year, opening a four-game conference road swing on Jan. 2, 2025, at Old Dominion. Tip-off against the Monarchs inside Chartway Arena in Norfolk, Va., is slated for 6 p.m. on ESPN+
