LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Despite a 12-day layover due to COVID-19 protocols, Texas State survived and defeated Little Rock 63-59 Friday night at the Jack Stephens Center. 
 

The Bobcats controlled much of the game and led 59-48 with 1:22 left to play. After an on-court altercation that led to two ejections, Little Rock went on a 6-0 run in 22 seconds to cut the Bobcat lead down 61-59 with nine seconds remaining. The Bobcats wrapped up the game with a pair of free-throws from sophomore guard Addison Wallace to secure the victory. Overall, the Bobcats shot 45.8 percent from the floor (22-of-48), made a season-high nine 3-pointers, and logged a season-high 83.3 free-throw percentage (10-of-12). Defensively, the Bobcats held the Trojans to a season-low 59 points and forced 14 turnovers in the win.
 

"It was a hard-fought game. Little Rock is one of the best teams in the league, so we expected it to be an intense game," said interim head coach Terrence Johnson. "I was proud of the way our guys competed. We defended really well early on, and that led to some good looks on the other end. Certainly, these are back-to-back, and tomorrow is a new game, so although I am happy for our guys, the job is not done. No time to celebrate. We have to rest and rehab and be ready to get better tomorrow."
  

Junior guard Caleb Asberry led all players with 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting, including three 3-pointers. Asberry also had four rebounds and one steal. Junior guard Mason Harrell followed with 16 points (5-of-10) and was a perfect 4-of-4 at the stripe. He also knocked down a pair of triples and handed out three assists. Graduate guard Marlin Davis filled the stat sheet with 12 points and a career-high 10 rebounds to register his second career double-double and first this season. Davis also led the team with five assists and had one steal.
 

Senior forward Ruot Monyyong put up another double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Trojans. He also had three assists, one block, and one steal. Junior forward Nikola Maric added 13 points, eight rebounds, one assist, and one steal, while sophomore guard Marko Lukic finished with 11 points, two steals, and two assists to round out the top performers. Little Rock's leading scorer junior guard Markquis Nowell had nine points on 1-of-6 shooting and was 1-of-5 from 3-point range (6-of-6 at the free-throw line). 
 

FIRST HALF
The Bobcats came out of the gates hot and shot 75.0 percent from the floor, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range to build a 15-4 lead by the first media timeout. In the next stanza, the visiting team held the Trojans scoreless for over three minutes and used an 8-0 run to increase their margin to 23-6 and eventually led 27-10 with 8:15 on the clock, which was the Bobcats' largest lead of the game. Both teams cooled down as the half went on, and Little Rock got back into the game with good free-throw shooting and used a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to single digits at 32-23 after Nowell's lone 3-pointer in the contest. Although the Bobcats ended the half going without a field goal for the final 4:46 and the Trojans took advantage with a 9-2 run, the visiting club went into intermission with a 34-25 led by Harrell's 11 points. In the first 20 minutes, TXST shot 46.4 percent from the floor (13-of-28) and knocked down five 3-pointers. 
 

SECOND HALF
Both teams started slowly in the second half, and although Little Rock cut the deficit to eight points, Texas State responded with a 9-2 run behind two triples from Asberry and another from Small to increase the lead back to 15, 47-32 with 11:55 on the clock. From there, the Trojans cut the lead down to as many as eight, but the Bobcats continued to respond, and Asberry's 3-point play pushed the lead back to 11 at 59-48 with 1:22 remaining. With seconds on the clock and after an altercation that saw two players get ejected (one on each team), the Trojans reeled off six unanswered points in 22 seconds to make it a one-possession game at 61-59 with nine seconds left. The Bobcats would prevail, however, as Wallace sunk two free-throws to end the game.
 

NOTABLES
• Texas State trailed only once in the game at 2-0.
• The Bobcats improve to 2-1 when playing in their black jerseys. 
• TXST is 5-0 this season when its opponent shoots less than 40.0 percent (LR- 38.5%)
• The Bobcats are 4-0 overall and 2-0 when allowing less than 60 points.
• Texas State is 8-2 this season when three or more players score in double figures.
• TXST was outscored by LR in the paint (28-24), the bench (22-2), off turnovers (18-10), and second-chance points (13-7).
• Texas State has won six of the last seven games against Little Rock (8-9 all-time).
• The Bobcats have not lost (4-0, 1-0 Sun Belt) when Caleb Asberry has led the team in scoring. He is currently on a 6-game streak of 10 or more points, matching the number of games he has started this season.  
• Mason Harrell extends his streak of scoring 10 or more points to 13 consecutive games. 
• Marlin Davis and Markquis Nowell were both ejected due to an altercation in the final minute of the game.

UP NEXT
The Bobcats conclude the two-game series against Little Rock at 4 p.m. tomorrow, Jan. 16.
 

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