Postgame Notes

Las Vegas, Nevada – Seventh-seeded Texas State led from tip off and never looked back. The Bobcats upset No. 2 seed Denver, 72-68, in the quarterfinals of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament to advance to tomorrow's semifinals at the Orleans Arena.

Junior Joel Wright had a monstrous night once again. The Brooklyn, N.Y. native scored 32 points (9-for-10 FG); 16 in the first half to lead the Bobcats to victory. Junior Phil Hawkins added 13 points, and senior Matt Staff came up big on the defensive end with four blocked shots. Texas State shot 65.7 percent from the field, and 82.1 percent from the charity stripe.

Texas State started the game 4-for-4 from the field to jump out to a 10-0 lead, while Denver struggled missing its first nine shots. The Bobcats never trailed in the first half, as they took a 36-32 edge into halftime.

The Bobcats came out of the locker room on fire as Wright rattled off six straight points to force a timeout by Denver. Texas State went into the first media timeout of the half with a 48-37 lead and 13:48 remaining.

Texas State led by as many as 14 points with 14:41 left to play, before the Pioneers hit back-to-back triples to trim the Bobcats lead to seven points.

The two teams traded points over the next few possessions, but it was a jumper by Deonte' Jones that gave Texas State a 63-57 lead at the 1:54 mark. It would be all free throws for Texas State down the final stretch as Denver decided to foul to stop the clock.

The Bobcats hit all 10 of their free throw attempts to come away with their third win in a row, and second of the tournament.

Brett Olson led Denver with 19 points. Jalen Love tallied 17 points, and Chris Udofia finished with 12 points. The Pioneers shot 40.4 percent from the floor, and 88.9 percent from the free throw line.

Texas State will continue play in the WAC Tournament on Friday, March 15 when it will face No. 3 seed New Mexico State in the semifinals. Tip-off versus the Aggies is slated for 8 p.m. CT.

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