SAN MARCOS, Texas –Texas State (14-9, 7-5 Sun Belt) completes its second regular-season sweep in the 2019-20 season by defeating Louisiana (9-14, 4-8 Sun Belt) 71-66 Saturday afternoon at Strahan Arena.

The Ragin' Cajuns scored the first four points of the game, but a 6-0 run put the Bobcats ahead and it would stay that way for the remainder of the contest. The Bobcats went to the half with a 30-23 lead and led by as many as 16 points in the second half despite being outscored 43-41.
 
Senior guard Nijal Pearson led all players with 17 points, shooting 6-of-17 from the floor, including 3-of-7 from 3-point range. He also finished with seven rebounds and three assists. Sophomore forward Alonzo Sule had 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds, and junior guard Shelby Adams turned in 11 points (5-of-9) and season-highs of three assists and three steals. He also had three rebounds.

Senior guard P.J. Hardy led Louisiana with 16 points behind four triples and had two assists. Freshman guard Mylik Wilson followed with 15 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two blocks, while junior forward Jalen Johnson finished with 12 points, six rebounds, two blocks, and a steal.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
A steady half saw the Bobcats take a 30-23 lead into the half. Pearson laid it in at the 4:30 mark to give the Bobcats their largest lead of the half at 25-15 and proceeded to score the team's next five points before junior forward Quentin Scott knocked down two free-throws to end the half. Pearson led all scorers with nine points followed by Sule's six points. Louisiana's Johnson led the team with six points and had three rebounds, one steal and one block.
 
Second Half
By the 16:08 mark, the Bobcats used an 8-0 run to increase their lead to 38-26 and later a 6-0 burst to go ahead 56-43 after a floater by Adams with 7:31 to play. The Bobcats ultimately led by as many as 16 points (62-46) and although the Ragin' Cajuns made a final big push with an 18-9 run highlighted by a 7-2 margin with 12 seconds remaining, Pearson sealed the game with two free-throws with less than 10 seconds left to play. 
 
 TXST GAME NOTES
• The Bobcats are on a three-game winning streak vs. the Ragin' Cajuns although still trailing 4-12.
• Texas State is 10-1 (4-1 in the Sun Belt) when out rebounding its opponent. The Bobcats outrebounded the Ragin' Cajuns 41-37, including a 14-9 margin on the offensive glass.
• Texas State is 13-4 (6-1 in the Sun Belt) when its bench outscores its opponent's bench. The Bobcats outscored the Ragin' Cajuns in bench points 26-8.
• TXST is 9-3 overall (4-2 in the Sun Belt) when leading at the half.  
• The Bobcats shot 37.1 percent from the floor (23-of-62), 40.0 percent from 3-point range (4-of-10, three in the second half), and 84.0 percent from the charity stripe (21-of-25).
• Louisiana shot 39.7 percent from the floor (23-of-58), 25.0 percent from 3-point range (7-of-28), and 76.5 percent from the free-throw line (13-of-17)
• Both teams were tied in points in the paint (28) and points off of turnovers (7).
• The Bobcats outscored the Ragin' Cajuns 16-7 in second chance points, and 7-2 in fast break points.
 
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
• Pearson moves to No. 11 on the Sun Belt Conference all-time scoring list with 1,968 career points after scoring 17 on Saturday.
• After handing out three assists, Pearson leaps into a tie at No. 8 all-time with Billy Bahnsen (1981-85) with 266 career assists.
• Junior guard Marlin Davis matches a season-high five rebounds for the third time this season. He also had seven points (5-of-6 from the free-throw line), and one steal in the game.    
 
QUOTES
Head coach Danny Kaspar's thoughts on tonight's game and the 2-0 weekend…
"It was good to beat Louisiana knowing that they came of a big win over UTA on a last-second shot. I expected them to be very fired up. But our guys responded almost right down the line to everything I asked them to do tonight to win this game. I asked for us to get 15 offensive rebounds and they got 14. I asked not to take a ton of threes and get to the free-throw line. The reason is because they [Louisiana] rely on fast break transition points. Well. We did not take many 3-pointers and was 21-of-25 from the free-throw line. Then I also wanted us to have 10 or less turnovers and look we had 10. So, I am very pleased with our performance tonight, as well as how we have and bounced back this week after our loss at home vs. UTA."
 
Kaspar's thoughts on Shelby Adams' play this week…
"I am very pleased with Shelby. He has worked very hard and he really deserves this. The work he puts in is paying off. He is a great, great young man and we are glad anytime we have a young man that is local (with him being from the San Antonio area) heats up and helps us get victories. That is great and we are all happy for him."
 
UP NEXT
Texas State will go back on the road next weekend and will play Coastal Carolina at 6 p.m. CT on Thursday, Feb. 6 at the HTC Center in Conway, S.C., before playing at Appalachian State at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 8 at the Holmes Center in Boone, N.C.
 
Stay updated on everything Texas State men's basketball by following the team on Facebook,  Twitter, and Instagram.