JACKSONVILLE – Jacksonville State men's basketball is set to host Jacksonville University at Pete Mathews Coliseum at 6 p.m. on Saturday in the semifinals of the 2022 ASUN Conference championship.
 
The Gamecocks (21-9) are coming off a 78-67 victory over Kennesaw State on Thursday night in the quarterfinal round, while the Dolphins (20-9) dispatched Central Arkansas on their home court. The matchup features the top seed in the West Division, JSU, against the runner-up from the East. JU finished 11-5 in league play, and was tied with division winner Liberty until the final day of the regular season.
 
The two teams met exactly one month ago on Feb. 5 in the only previous meeting of the season, where the Gamecocks won a physical battle, 64-58, at The Pete. As they did on Thursday, Jax State plans to White-Out Pete Mathews Coliseum again Saturday afternoon. Tickets for the 6 p.m. tip-off are still available and can be purchased at JSUGamecockSports.com/tickets. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 3-18, and free to all JSU students.
 
Led by All-ASUN First Team selection, Darian Adams, JSU's 21 victories this season are the third-most in the program's Division I era. The Gamecocks are also 11-3 inside the friendly confines of The Pete, which is one win shy of the most home victories in a season since making the jump from Division II in 1995.
 
The winner of Jax State and Jacksonville will advance to the ASUN championship game with a bid to the NCAA Tournament on the line. The Gamecocks' first and only trip to the Big Dance came in 2017 when the fourth-seeded squad ran through the Ohio Valley Conference tournament in Nashville, Tenn., in coach Ray Harper's debut season. With the right to host the title game with a win, JSU could play in a conference championship game on its home floor for the fifth time in team history. JSU played in, and won, four Gulf South Conference tournament championships at The Pete in 1983, 1985, 1989 and 1992.