NEW ORLEANS – The journey to the 2026 Visit Pensacola Sun Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Championship presented by Air Force Reserve heats up as teams return to conference play with seven midweek games Feb. 11-12, six games on Saturday Feb. 14, and two makeup games on Monday, Feb. 16.
 
All 15 games will be available on ESPN+, while Saturday evening’s Marshall (15-9, 7-4 SBC) at Georgia Southern (14-11, 6-6 SBC) will be televised nationally on ESPNU at 8:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. CT.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR
GAME OF THE WEEK: The Sun Belt Men’s Basketball Game of the Week features a matchup between two of the league’s high-octane offenses when Marshall travels to Georgia Southern for the first of two meetings on Saturday evening in Statesboro, Ga. In conference play, Marshall leads the league in field goal percentage, 3-point field goal percentage, 3-pointers made and assists, while ranking second in assist-to-turnover ratio and third in scoring. Meanwhile, Georgia Southern is second in scoring and turnover margin. Key defensive plays could also be on the docket when the teams tip off, as the Thundering Herd are second in the Sun Belt in 3-point percentage defense and first in blocked shots, while the Eagles are second in blocks and third in steals.
 
MOUNTAINEERS MOMENTUM: App State (17-9, 9-4 SBC) takes its league-leading six-game winning streak down the mountain for a pair of conference road games at Georgia Southern (Feb. 11) and James Madison (Feb. 14). The Mountaineers have risen to second place in the conference standings with wins in seven of their last eight games overall and sit just a half game behind Troy for the top spot. During the winning streak, App State has scored victories over multiple teams emerging in the standings, including a 14-point win over Louisiana, a 22-point road win at Troy, and an eight-point triumph over South Alabama. Graduate guard Kasen Jennings has scored in double figures each of the last six games which includes a trio of 20-plus-point scoring performances.
 
TEXAS STATE STRANGLEHOLD: Winners of four-straight games, Texas State (15-11, 7-6 SBC) owns a 13-1 record on its home court this season, including six-consecutive wins at Strahan Arena, and hosts a pair of conference tilts on its own hardwood when first-place Troy (17-8, 9-3 SBC) visits San Marcos on Wednesday evening before ULM (4-21, 1-11 SBC) comes to town Saturday afternoon. The Bobcats suffered a 100-80 defeat at Troy on Dec. 31 and defeated ULM, 84-79, on Jan. 3. In conference play, Texas State leads the Sun Belt in steals, ranks second in free throw percentage and third in rebounding margin.
 
CAJUN COOKING: Louisiana (9-16, 6-6 SBC) has caught fire over the last two weeks to win four-straight games and five of its last six. The Ragin’ Cajuns have been sparked by improved 3-point shooting and defensive metrics, as they currently rank second in 3-point field goal percentage in conference play and fifth in 3-pointers made, while ranking third in assist-to-turnover ratio and fourth in both blocks and turnover margin. Redshirt sophomore guard De’Vion Lavergne has emerged with double-digit scoring performances in seven-straight games and is averaging 18.3 points per contest while shooting 53 percent from the floor and 56 percent beyond the arc during the Cajuns’ winning streak.
 
STANDINGS SCRAMBLE: Heading into the eighth week of conference play, the difference between third place and 11th place in the Sun Belt standings is just one game in the win column. South Alabama and Marshall are currently tied for third place with 7-4 records, respectively, while Southern Miss currently represents the No. 11 seed with a 6-7 mark. Four additional teams own 6-6 records in league play, while two others are 7-6.
 
MONDAY MAKEUPS: Two Sun Belt games rescheduled in the wake of hazardous conditions caused by wintry weather on Jan. 21 will be played Monday, Feb. 16. Both matchups will mark the lone regular-season meeting between teams as Louisiana travels to Old Dominion and South Alabama heads to Marshall.
 
MAC-SBC CHAMPIONS: For the second time in three seasons, the Sun Belt Conference defeated the Mid-American Conference (MAC) in men’s basketball in the biennial MAC-SBC Challenge. Sun Belt teams earned 14 victories compared to the MAC’s 12, including four road wins on Nov. 3 and 10 home wins on Feb. 7. The Sun Belt won the challenge, 15-9, during the inaugural year of the event in 2023-24 before sharing the title last season with 12 wins apiece.
 
PARTY IN PENSACOLA: The 2026 Visit Pensacola Sun Belt Men’s Basketball Championship presented by Air Force Reserve will be held March 3-9, 2026 at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Fla., The championship game will be televised nationally on ESPN or ESPN2 on Monday, March 9 at 6 p.m. (CT). The 2026 tournament will mark the sixth consecutive season the Sun Belt hosts the event in Pensacola, which will remain at the venue through the 2029-30 campaign. A different program has been crowned champion in each of the first five years in Pensacola: Troy (2025), James Madison (2024), Louisiana (2023), Georgia State (2022) and App State (2021).

IMPACT PLAYERS – Sun Belt Statistical Leaders
Points Per Game: Jelani Hamilton, Georgia State (18.0)
Rebounds Per Game: Thomas Dowd, Troy (10.4)
Assists Per Game: Jalen Speer, Marshall (5.7)
Blocks Per Game: Matt Van Komen, Marshall (2.6)
Steals Per Game: Kaden Gumbs, Texas State (2.0)
Field Goal Percentage: D.J. Hall, Texas State (.545)
3-Point Field Goal Percentage: Cobi Campbell, Troy (.447)
Free Throw Percentage: Jelani Hamilton, Georgia State (.900)

 WHERE TO WATCH

Date	Time	Matchup	ESPN+
Weds., Feb. 11	6:30 p.m.	Marshall at Old Dominion	ESPN+
Weds., Feb. 11	7:00 p.m.	Troy at Texas State	ESPN+
Weds., Feb. 11	7:00 p.m.	ULM at Arkansas State	ESPN+
Weds., Feb. 11	7:00 p.m.	App State at Georgia Southern	ESPN+
Thursday, Feb. 12	6:00 p.m.	Georgia State at James Madison	ESPN+
Thursday, Feb. 12	6:00 p.m.	Coastal Carolina at Louisiana	ESPN+
Thursday, Feb. 12	7:30 p.m.	South Alabama at Southern Miss	ESPN+
Saturday, Feb. 14	2:00 p.m.	South Alabama at Arkansas State	ESPN+
Saturday, Feb. 14	2:00 p.m.	ULM at Texas State	ESPN+
Saturday, Feb. 14	2:30 p.m.	Georgia State at Old Dominion	ESPN+
Saturday, Feb. 14	3:00 p.m.	App State at James Madison	ESPN+
Saturday, Feb. 14	7:30 p.m.	Troy at Southern Miss	ESPN+
Saturday, Feb. 14	7:30 p.m.	Marshall at Georgia Southern	ESPNU
Monday, Feb. 16	4:00 p.m.	Louisiana at Old Dominion	ESPN+
Monday, Feb. 16	6:00 p.m.	South Alabama at Marshall	ESPN+

All Times CT