Feb. 11, 2006

Box Score

SAN MARCOS - Dwight Boatner scored 19 points, including 11-of-12 from the free throw line, as McNeese State defeated Texas State Saturday at Strahan Coliseum.

McNeese State (12-9, 7-3 Southland Conference) made 22-of-27 free throws in the second half (81.5 percent) to offset a shooting 36.8 percent from the field (7-of-19).

Texas State (2-19, 0-10 SLC) will continue to look for its first conference win Monday as the Bobcats have a quick turnaround in traveling to Southeastern Louisiana.

Chris Langhorne scored 20 points for the Bobcats in the losing effort. Charles Dotson tallied 10 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots.

J. T. Williams poured in 13 points for the Cowboys, and Aaron Troy added 10 points.

McNeese State shot out of the gate early, scoring the first seven points of the game.

After going scoreless for over three minutes to start the game, Langhorne got the Bobcats on the board with a layup at 16:27. The basket ignited an 11-0 run by the `Cats, with Langhorne scoring nine points during that stretch.

After falling behind by four at 11-7, the Cowboys responded with a 14-0 run of their own, taking a 21-11 lead on Boatner's three-pointer with 5:41 remaining in the half.

McNeese State stretched their lead to 15 points twice in the last three minutes of the half. They took a 32-20 lead into halftime.

The Cowboys forced 13 Bobcat turnovers during the first half, and outscored Texas State 12-5 in points off turnovers during the first 20 minutes.

Texas State scored the first six points to open the second 20 minutes, which was a part of a 13-4 half-opening run that saw the `Cats come within four points of the Cowboys at 37-33 with 15:41 remaining.

McNeese State answered the Bobcat attack by outscoring Texas State 14-2 over the next 5:36 to re-establish a double-digit lead at 51-35. The Cats missed four field goal attempts and turned the ball over six times in that span.

The Bobcats would get as close as seven points multiple times with under five minutes to play, but could not cut the advantage further.