CONWAY, S.C. – Coastal Carolina held Texas State to a single field goal in the opening 7:30 of the fourth quarter to turn a four-point advantage into 10 as the Chanticleers defeated the Bobcats 64-48 Saturday afternoon in Sun Belt women's basketball action.
 
Texas State (10-10, 5-4 Sun Belt) was led by Toshua Leavitt's career-high 20 points as the sophomore guard went 7 of 18 from the field and tied a career-high with five 3-pointers. McKinley Bostad and De'Jionae Calloway each finished with seven points, while Ericka May led the Bobcats with seven rebounds.
 
Coastal Carolina (9-10, 4-5 Sun Belt) was paced by Kennedy Archer's 19 points. Ced Gibson finished with 13 and Rachel Gregory added 12. Alexis Robinson pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds to help the Chants win the battle on the boards 38-32.
 
Texas State closed the game shooting 35.7 percent (20 of 56), while Coastal was 21 of 52 for 40.4 percent. Each team connected on six shots from distance and scored 18 points in the paint.
 
The first quarter was played even with each team scoring 10. Leavitt counted six of the Bobcats' points by way of two 3-pointers, while Coastal's Archer led the Chanticleers with five points.
 
Coastal opened the second quarter with 3-pointer by Gibson and Archer around a score in the paint by Peoples to take a 16-12 lead only 2:03 in the stanza. After a DJ Williams score inside made it 18-12 in favor of the Chants, Texas State pieced together a 5-0 run, cutting its deficit to 18-17. Gibson answered with a second 3-pointer, but a score inside by Calloway and a third 3-pointer by Leavitt pushed the Bobcats back in front 22-21. Coastal's Alexis Robinson made the final shot of the half with four seconds showing on the clock, sending the teams into the intermission with Coastal leading 23-22.
 
The third quarter featured an offensive explosion by both teams as the sides combined for 37 points and shot 61.5 percent from the floor (16 of 26). The quarter had two ties and three lead changes as baskets were exchanged. The Bobcats stayed in front of the Chants during the initial stages of the quarter, but a 7-0 run by Coastal left the home team up 36-32 with 5:06 to go. The final 14 points of the quarter were split as both converted two jumpers and a 3-pointer.
 
The Chanticleers held Texas State scoreless over the first 5:10 of the fourth quarter, while piecing together a 6-0 run to establish control of the contest at 49-39. Jones broke the Bobcats' scoring drought with a score inside and Leavitt cut the deficit to 44-51 with her career-high-tying fifth 3-pointer at the 2:37 mark, but the Bobcats would count only two more baskets as Coastal secured the 64-48 win.
  • Texas State closes out its three-game road swing next Saturday (Feb. 4) at UTA with the opening tip scheduled for 2 p.m. The Bobcats lead the all-time series against the Mavericks 38-31.
  • The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are scheduled for a week of March Madness in the Big Easy.  New Orleans will once again be home to the two championships ­that will take place at Lakefront Arena from March 7-12 and ticket books can now be purchased from the Texas State ticket office.  For more information, visit the Sun Belt Conference's championship central websites - Men's Championship – Women's Championship – and be sure to follow the @FunBelt on social media - @SunBelt.