ELON, N.C. – The Elon University men's basketball team plays its first of two home games this week on Thursday night, Feb. 14, when the Phoenix welcomes Appalachian State to Alumni Gym for a Valentine’s Day matchup. Tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. and admission is $12 for adults and $5 for youth 12 and under.
 
Elon (16-8, 9-3 SoCon) vs. Appalachian State (11-13, 7-6 SoCon)
Site: Elon, N.C.
Arena (Capacity): Alumni Gym (1,607)
Series: ASU leads, 52-42
Last Meeting: January 12, 2013, at ASU – ASU won, 80-70
Radio: WPCM 920 AM – Taylor Durham (play-by-play) and Dick Stewart (color)
Twitter Updates: @elonscores
 
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THE SERIES: Thursday night marks the 95th all-time meeting between Elon and Appalachian State. ASU leads the series, 52-42. Since 1994, Elon has a 5-4 record against ASU inside Alumni Gym. Since joining the Southern Conference, Elon has a 6-13 record versus the Mountaineers.
 
LAST MEETING: The Mountaineers came away with an 80-70 win over the Phoenix on Jan. 13 at the Holmes Convocation Center in Boone, N.C., despite a career-high 26 points from Phoenix forward Ryley Beaumont. Elon shot 50 percent from the field in the game, but struggled to find a rhythm from beyond the arc, going 4-of-20. Elon led by as many as 12 points in the game, but saw the Mountaineers close the half on a 15-3 run to take momentum and tie the game at the half.

ON VALENTINE’S DAY: Elon has played a total of 17 games on Valentine’s Day in its history, posting an 8-9 record. Elon and Appalachian State have met just once on Valentine’s Day, as the Phoenix claimed a 76-70 victory over the Mountaineers in 2008 at Alumni Gym. 
 
LOOKING BACK: Elon came from 12 points down to claim a 64-60 win at Furman on Feb. 9. Sebastian Koch led the Phoenix attack with 19 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the field and a 5-for-6 clip from the free-throw line.  
 
LOOKING AHEAD: Following Thursday’s game, Elon hosts Western Carolina on Saturday night at 7 p.m.
 
MID-MAJOR TOP 25: Elon earned a No. 25 ranking in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 on Feb. 4. After going 1-1 last week, the Phoenix dropped out of the poll, but earned 16 total votes.
 
WINNING WAYS: Elon’s 16 wins this season are the most since the program made the transition to the Division I ranks and most since the 1996-97 season.
 
ROAD TO ASHEVILLE: The 2013 Southern Conference Tournament is scheduled for March 8-11, 2013, at the Asheville Civic Center in Asheville, N.C. Elon earned the second seed in the North Division last year and a first-round bye. The Phoenix topped Georgia Southern in the quarterfinals before falling to eventual tournament champion Davidson in the semifinals. If the tournament started today, the Phoenix would earn the No. 2 overall seed and a first-round bye.