SAN MARCOS, Texas – Junior guard Mason Harrell took over the second half and registered a career-high 27 points to lead all scorers, but Texas State fell 74-73 in the gut-wrenching series finale against Louisiana Saturday evening at Strahan Arena.    

With the scoreboard reading 71-67 Bobcats, sophomore guard Butts sunk a 3-pointer and junior guard Brayan Au found sophomore guard Mylik Wilson with a behind-the-back pass for an easy layup to give Louisiana a 72-71 lead with a minute left to play. Harrell was fouled on the ensuing possession and made both of his free-throws to regain the lead for the Bobcats 73-72 with 30 seconds left. Senior guard Cedric Russell put up a jump shot that hit back iron, but Wilson tracked down the long offensive rebound and drew a foul for another shot with 11 seconds left. Seconds later, Russell drove into the paint for a layup, but Harrell drew the charge, giving the home team the ball back with three seconds left. The Bobcats inbounded underneath the Ragin' Cajuns basket and the ball from senior forward Isiah Small went through junior guard Caleb Asberry's hands and into Butts'. Butts quickly kissed the ball off the glass and scored to give Louisiana the go-ahead bucket, making the score 74-73 with 0.4 seconds left, which ultimately was the final score.  

All-in-all, the Bobcats shot 45.9 percent from the floor (28-of-61), 45.5 percent from 3-point range (5-of-11), and a season-high 92.3 percent from the free-throw line (12-of-13). Louisiana shot the ball well and shot 57.1 percent from the floor (28-of-49), 64.7 from 3-point range (11of-17), and 87.5 from the stripe (7-of-8). With the loss, TXST falls in the regular-season series vs. Louisiana 1-3 and is now on a two-game losing streak.

"I thought our guys played hard," said interim head coach Terrence Johnson. "We came out with a different level of focus and were ready to compete. Louisiana is a good team and well-coached. They shot the ball well tonight, but I wish we would have done a little bit more to offer some resistance. But they did make some very tough shots and they have some good pieces. Again, we played well, but I think we still have some room to grow and I do not know if you ever stop learning how to win."

Harrell turned in his first career 20-point performance and scored 16 of his 27 points in the second half on 5-of-7 shooting, including one 3-pointer. On the day, Harrell was 9-of-13 from the field knocked down two triples and was a perfect 7-of-7 from the charity stripe. He also led the team with four assists and added one steal. Asberry finished with 15 points (6-of-8) and was 2-of-2 from behind-the-arc. Asberry also totaled five rebounds and two assists. Small rounded out the top scorers for the Bobcats with 12 points (5-of-10) and had two steals and an assist.

Russell led Louisiana with 24 points highlighted by six made 3-pointers in the game (four in the second half). Russell also chipped in three rebounds and one assist. Butts was his co-pilot with 18 points (6-of-7) and made four 3-pointers in the game. Butts scored 10 points in the second half, including the game-winning field goal. 

FIRST HALF
Both teams traded baskets in what was a fast-paced half that had Louisiana ahead 23-18 at the under eight-minute media timeout. The home team began to build momentum with a 6-0 run sparked by a 3-pointer from Harrell that ballooned to a 10-3 run to build a 32-28 lead with four minutes left in the half. Louisiana responded quickly, however by scoring 10 of the final 13 points to go into the half with a 38-35 lead. Harrell led the Bobcats with 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting. 

SECOND HALF
After Louisiana scored the first points of the second half, Small and Asberry connected from behind-the-arc to spark a 10-0 lead to put Texas State ahead 45-40. The Bobcats held a 52-49 advantage thanks to another 5-0 run by Asberry, but the game was knotted at 52 after Russell's fourth 3-pointer of the game. Russell began to heat up and knocked down his third and fourth triple of the half and Butts tacked on a triple himself to give Louisiana a 61-56 lead with 10:38 on the clock. TXST stayed in the game however with seven unanswered points, highlighted by Harrell's 3-pointer from the top of the key to tie the game at 61. After a second-chance bucket from Small gave the Bobcats a 63-61 lead, both teams exchanged baskets until TXST found themselves ahead 71-67 heading into the final media timeout. However, Butts' 3-pointer after the media made it a one-point game and ignited a Ragin' Cajuns 7-2 run to close the game and steal the win 74-73.

UP NEXT
The Bobcats remain home next weekend to take on Little Rock at 4 p.m. on Feb. 5-6 in Strahan Arena.

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