Men's Basketball | 2/24/2016 8:23:00 PM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State men's basketball team hits the road for the final time this season for three straight games beginning Thursday at Arkansas State in the Convocation Center with tip set for 7:45 p.m. ESPN3 will broadcast the game with Matt Stolz (play-by-play) and Nelson Catalina (analyst) on the call.
 
The Bobcats are coming off a big win Saturday against UL Lafayette to keep pace in the race for a final spot in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. Entering Thursday's game, Texas State is 11-13 overall and 5-10 in conference play, a game out of the eighth seed.
 
All-Time Series
Leading the all-time series 3-2 is Arkansas State. The Red Wolves won the first three meetings but the Bobcats have won the last two including the first meeting that ended 78-68. All three of ASU's victories have been by five points while both of Texas State's win have ended with a 10-point margin.
 
Scouting Texas State
Coming off an 18-point, 8-rebound game on Saturday, Emani Gant leads the Bobcats at 13.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. He has also made a team-high 50.0 percent of his shots. The senior forward has 13 blocks this year to give him 50 in his career.
 
Second in scoring at 11.8 ppg is Kavin Gilder-Tilbury. Adding 10.6 points per contest and the top three-point threat on the squad is Ethan Montalvo. The Omaha, Nebraska native has made 48 three-pointers this season.
 
Junior Ojai Black has handed 3.8 assists per game over the last nine games. During the same time frame, he has turned the ball over 12 times for a 2.8 assists-to-turnover ratio. Black is coming off a career-high tying 14-point game after making 5-of-9 from the field and going 4-for-6 at the free throw line.
 
The Bobcats enter surrendering 64.1 ppg, the 20th lowest in the country. They are also 34th with a +2.5 turnover margin, forcing 14.7 turnovers per game. Offensively, Texas State is scoring 65.2 ppg on 42.0 percent shooting, 32.4 percent from long distance and converting 68.0 percent at the free throw line.
 
Scouting Arkansas State
Arkansas State heads into Thursday's game with an 11-16 record on the season and 7-9 in the SBC. The Red Wolves have lost five consecutive games and nine of their last 12. In home games, they are 9-4 with a 5-3 mark against conference teams.
 
Devin Carter leads the team at 17.3 ppg, 78 three-pointers and a 42.4 three-point field goal percentage. Overall, he is making 47.0 percent of his shots and has converted 69.7 percent of his free throw attempts.
 
Pacing ASU and second in the SBC with 9.0 rpg is Anthony Livingston. The big man is averaging 15.7 points per game and has made 88.0 percent of his free throws.
 
Contributing 11.4 points and team best 5.7 assists per contest is Donte Thomas but he has played in only three of the Red Wolves' last eight games. The fourth player on the team contributing double-digit points is Sean Gardner at 10.5. His 26 steals are tied for the team lead with Thomas.
 
ASU is scoring 73.9 points per game on 41.8 percent shooting, 32.1 percent from beyond the arc and making a conference-high 74.1 percent at the charity stripe but surrender 75.3 ppg. Opponents have outrebounded the Red Wolves by 5.3 per game over the last 12 contests.
 
Fans can listen to the game over the air waves on 1300 The Zone (1300 AM) and KTSW 89.9 FM with Bill Culhane on the call. Live stats, audio and video will be available with links on the Bobcats men's basketball schedule page at www.txstatebobcats.com, the official website of Texas State Athletics.