SAN MARCOS, Texas – Texas State secured the regular-season series win with a 57-47 decision against Little Rock Friday afternoon at Strahan Arena. It was the Bobcats' first home conference win and the sixth double-digit victory this season, including four against Sun Belt opponents and two against Little Rock.
The Bobcats (12-6, 6-3 Sun Belt) pulled away in the first half with a 29-7 run and stayed the course, picking up their third victory in the four-game regular-season series against the reigning Sun Belt Champions. Of the nine Bobcats that saw the floor, eight of them scored, and graduate guard Marlin Davis who was scoreless led the team with five assists and had a +10-efficiency rate. TXST shot 46.9 percent from the floor (23-of-49) and held the Trojans (10-8, 6-5 Sun Belt) to a 38.6 field goal percentage.
"From a coaching standpoint, I do not know if you can ask for more regarding the term complete team effort," said interim head coach Terrence Johnson. "I thought our guys were locked in and focused from start to finish, and I think their approach to the game was that everything matters. That is what we have been preaching the most in the last week. Tonight, our guys did not care who got the credit. Every single player that played scored outside of one and that one player had five assists. I am proud of our team, and I know it will take a similar effort tomorrow, especially on the defensive and rebounding areas."
Junior forward Alonzo Sule was the only Bobcats to reach double figures as he finished with 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting and was 4-of-4 at the stripe. Senior forward Isiah Small and junior guards Caleb Asberry and Mason Harrell all had nine points in the win.
Junior forward Nikola Maric led the Trojans with 12 points (5-of-9), and Sophomore guard Marko Lukic followed with nine points (3-of-7). Senior forward Ruot Monyyong was held in check with four points on the day but did have a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with three steals and one assist.
FIRST HALF
Little Rock started the game with an 8-2 run, but Texas State controlled the majority of the half behind a 9-0 run that ballooned to an 11-1 margin to give the home team a 17-13 advantage by the 7:56 media timeout. The Bobcat run continued on the other side of the media timeout, as they scored the next six points (17-1 run) to increase their lead to double-digits 23-13, and eventually increased their lead to as many as 16 points, 35-19, behind a 29-7 run. TXST went into the half with a 37-24 advantage and the team shooting 55.6 percent from the field (15-of-27) and was led by nine points from Asberry on 4-of-8 shooting.
SECOND HALF
Although Texas State was outscored 23-20 in the second half, the home team's lead never returned to single digits and was backed behind an 8-2 run early in the half, extending its lead to 45-28, the largest lead in the game. Little Rock pulled within 10 points on four separate occasions, but the Bobcats had an answer each time, minus LR scoring the final points of the game.
NOTABLES
• Texas State improves to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in conference play when holding its opponent below 40.0 percent shooting. The Bobcats are also 3-0 overall and 2-0 in Sun Belt play when allowing less than 50 points.
• When Texas State goes into the half with a lead, they are 9-1 overall and 5-1 in the Sun Belt.
• Alonzo Sule led the team in scoring for the first time this season and reached double-digit scoring for the sixth time this season (23rd of his career).
• Mason Harrell matched a career-high five rebounds for the sixth time, including four times this season. Harrell also had four assists.
• Caleb Asberry finished with four rebounds, two assists, and a steal.
• Isiah Small registered four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
• Senior guard Shelby Adams had seven points, a game-high six rebounds, and matched a team-best two steals in the game.
• Junior forward Nighael Ceaser matched a season-high two blocks for the second time this season. He also added four points, two rebounds, and one steal.
• Senior forward Quentin Scott had five points and two rebounds, while freshman forward Nate Martin contributed four points and three rebounds.
UP NEXT
The Bobcats goes for the regular-season series vs. Little Rock at 4 p.m. tomorrow, Feb. 6 at Strahan Arena.
Stay updated on everything Texas State men's basketball by following the team on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
-- TXSTATEBOBCATS.COM --
