MONROE, La. — Playing just down the road from her hometown, Texas State junior forward
Chelsea Johnson turned in a standout performance as Texas State knocked off ULM, 58-50, to open Sun Belt Conference play.
Johnson, who shot 4 of 5 from the field and knocked down three free throws, was one of four Bobcat student-athletes (
Da'Nasia Hood,
Sierra Dickson, Johnson and
Kennedy Taylor) to finish with double-digit points as she finished with 11 points and six rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench. Thursday night's scoring performance marked the first time Johnson scored in double figures since having 13 points in 19 minutes at ULM on March 5, 2020.
Johnson connected of three first-quarter free throw attempts in six minutes of game action during the game's opening 10-minute stanza. She returned to the court midway through the second quarter and blocked a shot and converted a layup attempt with 1:54 remaining before halftime.
With Texas State (6-7, 1-0) fighting to take the lead midway through the third quarter, Johnson was credited with a steal, then scored the game-tying layup. Less than seven seconds later, she gathered an offensive rebound and made the second-chance layup to give the Bobcats the lead.
Two minutes later, Johnson made another layup, was credited with her second steal of the game and pulled down another offensive rebound. She pulled down her final rebound of the game on
the defensive glass with 7:22 remaining in the game and Texas State leading by 11.
FROM HEAD COACH ZENARAE ANTOINE
"(Chelsea) was just aggressive and hit the glass all throughout the night. She did a good job of communicating through things and just her attitude when she hit adversity. She did a good job of bouncing back and I think everyone fed off her energy as well knowing she is playing in her home state in front of friends and family."
STAT LEADERS
SCORES BY QUARTER
- 1st | ULM 12, Texas State 11
- 2nd | ULM 23, Texas State 22
- 3rd | Texas State 41, ULM 34
- 4th | Texas State 58, ULM 50
MATCH NOTES
- With her 19-point performance Thursday night, Texas State senior forward Da'Nasia Hood passed Shawna Hicks (1972-75) for 15th on the program's career scoring list. Hood, a preseason All-Sun Belt selection, will enter Saturday afternoon's game with 1,095 career points; eight back of tying Sarah Wagner (1996-00) for 14th.
- For the first time in their careers, Texas State sophomore guards Presley Bennett and Sierra Dickson both earned their first career starts Thursday night. Bennett had one rebound in 15 minutes, while Dickson played a career-high 38 minutes en route to scoring 12 points, bringing down five rebounds and dished out two assists.
- The 40 points scored in the paint by Texas State Thursday night were the most by the Bobcats in a single game against a Division I opponent this season and third-most points overall.
UP NEXT
- Texas State will continue its two-game swing throughout the state of Louisiana when the Bobcats travel to Lafayette to play Louisiana on Saturday, Jan. 1 at 2 p.m.
- For the latest information on the team, follow @TXStateWBB on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. General athletic news can also be at @TxStateBobcats on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
