PULLMAN, Wash. – Texas State entered Friday's game at Washington State outsized and facing a team that had guys that could score from anywhere on the floor. A strong defensive performance in the second half allowed the Bobcats to force overtime but the Cougars came out on top 78-73 in Beasley Coliseum.
 
Texas State (5-3) forced WSU (7-2) into 20 turnovers with nine being the result of a steal. Despite the size differential, the Bobcats outscored the Cougars 42-38 in the paint and rejected four shots.
 
Emani Gant led all scorers with a career-high 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting. He also grabbed a team best seven rebounds and totaled two steals. Also setting a career-high in points and blocks was Anthony Roberson with 12 and three, respectively.
 
Finishing with 13 points and going a perfect 8-for-8 at the free throw line was Ethan Montalvo. The senior guard led TXST with four assists and posted two steals on the defensive end of the court.
 
Ojai Black paced all players with three steals to tie his career-high that he set earlier this year at McNeese State.
 
Two buckets from Montalvo and Roberson put the Bobcats up 4-0 less than a minute into the game. TXST was able to maintain a the lead until WSU's Charles Callison hit a three-pointer from the left wing coming out of the under-12 media timeout. That trey kick started a 13-1 run for the Cougars with the lone point for the Cats coming a free throw courtesy of Maljhum McCrea.
 
Down 34-21 with 3:28 to play in the half, Montalvo was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all of the free throws to begin an 8-0 run. Gant converted an old-fashion three-point play and Black drove the lane for a basket accounted for the rest of the points during the scoring stretch.
 
Two free throws by the Cougars with 6.6 seconds on the clock gave them a 36-29 advantage heading into intermission.
 
Layups from Gant and Roberson to open the second half cut Texas State's deficit to three. However, seven of the next nine points went to WSU's lead back to eight.
 
Gant read a pass inside perfectly for a steal. He then drove down the court and thru the entire Cougar defense for a slam to cut the score to 43-39 in favor of the Cougars with 15:40 to play.
 
The Bobcats stiff defense allowed them to cut the deficit to two following a layup by Roberson with 9:21 left on the clock. After WSU converted an and-1, K.J. Malveau nailed a trey from the left corner to keep it a two-point contest.
 
Valentine Izundu dunked the ball to increase the Cougars lead to 64-58 with 2:19 showing on the clock. Three-pointers from Black and Montalvo bookended a shot clock violation by WSU to tie the score. The Cougars had a chance to win in regulation but a jumper by Callison hit off the iron and the board was grabbed by Gant.
 
WSU made three free throws to open the extra period and would not relinquish the lead. The closest the Bobcats got was 71-70 with 2:03 left in the game after two free throws by Gant.
 
Texas State closes out its non-conference slate on Monday in Strahan Coliseum against Howard Payne with tipoff scheduled for 7 p.m. Fans can listen to the game on 1300 The Zone (1300 AM) via the iHeartRadio app on mobile devices and phones.