AJ Dancler's 32 Points Leads Coastal Carolina to 76-71 Road Victory

Coastal Carolina went on the road to defeat Georgia State 76-71, avenging its home loss from earlier in the season. The victory was fueled by AJ Dancler’s 32 points, tying his career high from his performance against ULM earlier in the month.

A very physical and defensive first half started with both teams struggling to score, with each team managing just one point in the first four minutes. The insertion of DaJohn Craig helped the Chants jump out to an 8-3 lead, but the Panthers were able to climb back and take the lead. After going back and forth for the rest of the first half, Coastal took a 30-28 lead into the break.

Dancler led all scorers after the first 20 minutes with 13 points, shooting 6-for-11. Craig added a quick six points, and freshman Tristan Thompson added four off the bench. The Chanticleers shot just 34% from the field and 18% from deep, but their nine points off turnovers and eight second-chance points helped them take the lead.

Malachi Brown was the only Panther in double figures through the first 20 minutes with 10 points. The point guard also corralled six rebounds. Anthony Enoh chipped in nine points off the bench and provided a small-ball look. The Panthers did not make a three-pointer in the first half and attempted only six, which is rare in today’s game.

Have the lead through 20 pic.twitter.com/tKExIcQ6S7

— Coastal Men’s Basketball (@CoastalMBB) February 25, 2026

In the second half, the Chanticleers came out firing, jumping out to a nine-point lead just over four minutes into the half. The Panthers quickly answered and took a three-point lead with 9:45 remaining. About four minutes later, a Dancler shot pushed the lead to two possessions, and the Chants appeared to be pulling away late.

A three-pointer by Joah Chappelle with just over one minute left cut the score to 73-71. On the next possession, RaSheed Jones missed a shot the Panthers needed, but a big offensive rebound by the Chants helped seal the game. After made free throws, Coastal was able to finish the game with a 76-71 road win.

Road W pic.twitter.com/uLgfykrQmi

— Coastal Men’s Basketball (@CoastalMBB) February 25, 2026

Dancler’s 32 points came on 12-for-20 shooting and 4-for-8 from three-point range. Jones finished as the second-leading scorer with 12 points despite missing eight shots from behind the arc. The team’s leading scorer, Josh Beadle, finished with six points on 10 shots but contributed seven rebounds, four assists and zero turnovers.

The Chants had only six turnovers as a team, one of the lowest marks of the season. Coastal finished with 41 rebounds, right around its season average, with 14 coming on the offensive glass — five more than the Panthers.

For Georgia State, Brown finished with a career-high 26 points, along with eight rebounds and six assists. Jelani Hamilton, the Panthers’ leading scorer on the season, finished with 14 points on 15 shots. Tucker was the final player in double figures with 12. As a team, the Panthers made just five three-pointers, well below their season average.

Coastal Carolina improved to 18-12 on the season and 10-7 in the conference. Its 18 regular-season wins are the most since 2015-16, its last season in the Big South. The 10 conference wins are also the most since 2016-17. The Chanticleers will look to build on their historic season on Feb. 27, traveling to take on James Madison. With a win, they could potentially earn a share of the Sun Belt regular-season championship.

Georgia State fell to 10-20 (7-10 Sun Belt) and currently sits 12th in the Sun Belt standings entering the final game of the regular season. The Panthers will take on Old Dominion on Feb. 27. With a loss, they would finish 13th, but a win could move them as high as ninth.