BOWLING GREEN, Ky.—Jax State is down to its final 10 Conference USA games before the postseason begins. That stretch begins Thursday night when the Gamecocks face WKU at Diddle Arena.
 
Halfway through its league schedule, Jax State is 6-4; a half game behind Sam Houston and Missouri State which are tied for second.
 
Thursday's game wraps up a three-game road trip which the Gamecocks have split thus far with a win a week ago at FIU before a seven-point loss on Saturday at Missouri State.
 
Outside shooting has been a key to success this year with the Gamecocks third in league play in 3-point field goal percentage, shooting 37% with 70 made 3's. They have also defended the 3-point line well, holding opponents to a 32.6% success rate from bonus range. AC Bryant's 3.3 made triples per contest in league play is tied for the best in the conference.
 
In conference play, Mostapha El Moutaouakkil leads the league in scoring at 18.3 per contest.
 
WKU comes into the game with a 12-10 overall record and are 5-6 in Conference USA play. The Hilltoppers won their first six games of the season before a five-point loss to Vanderbilt, currently ranked 15^th in the AP Top 25 at the Battle 4 Atlantis. They were a 65-60 winner at Middle Tennessee on Saturday to end a four-game slide.
 
As a team, they are eighth nationally in offensive rebounding at 14.2 per contest. The last time these two teams played, WKU had 24 offensive rebounds which is the most a team has recorded against Jax State this season. The Gamecocks had a season-low five offensive rebounds in the game.
 
Teagan Moore leads WKU with a 17.2 points per game average and has posted 15 or more points 15 times.
 
The game will also feature two of Conference USA's top freshman in Armelo Boone of WKU, which has been named the league's freshman of the week four times and averages 11.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, and the reigning freshman of the week Jacoby Hill of Jax State who hit the game winning jumper with a second left at FIU on Wednesday.
 
Jax State has won the last three meetings between the two programs, winning for the first time in Bowling Green in program history last January. The Gamecocks picked up an 11-point win in Jacksonville on December 29^th in their Conference USA opener.
 
Thursday's game will be the first regular season nationally televised game since January 13, 2024 when the Gamecocks played on CBS Sports Network at Western Kentucky.