BOONE, N.C. – For the second game in a row, Mason Harrell finished with 17 points, five assists and two steals. However, the Texas State men's basketball team fell in a valiant effort 82-75 to App State in the Holmes Convocation Center on Thursday.
 
Harrell did most of his damage in the second half where he netted 13 of his points as he knocked down two three-pointers and made all five of his free throw attempts.
 
With the result, the Bobcats are now 12-16 on the season and 5-10 in the Sun Belt Conference while the Mountaineers improved to 15-13 overall and 8-7 in league play.
 
"A tough, hard-fought game. I felt like we competed and gave ourselves a chance to win the game," said head coach Terrence Johnson. "We have to find a way to be more solid down the stretch of games. That ultimately determines the outcome more often than not. We have a great opportunity to bounce back and respond on Sunday. We'll be ready."
 
Three other TXST players also finished with double-digit points. Nighael Ceaser netted 12 points, all in the first 20 minutes, on 6-of-10 shooting. Tyrel Morgan fell a rebound shy of a double-double with 11 points and game-high nine rebounds. Also finishing with 11 points was Brandon Davis as he made three shots from beyond the arc.
 
It was a close contest for the first 10 minutes with the largest lead being three by APP at 17-14. Following a layup by Morgan that cut the deficit to one at the 11:47 mark, Texas State go scoreless for 6:04 as the hosts built an 11-point advantage.
 
Davis ended the scoring drought with his first made three-pointer of the contest. After the Mountaineers responded with a bucket of their own to retake a double-digit lead, the Bobcats would score 12 consecutive points over a 2:53 span that was capped off by a Ceaser layup to go up 31-29.

BD from deep to tie the game!#EatEmUp pic.twitter.com/yq7eSlHzKj

— Texas State MBB (@TXStateMBB) February 17, 2023

 
App State would tally the last four points of the period to go into halftime leading 33-31.

Spinning fadeaway to tie the game#EatEmUp x @Tyrel_Morgan pic.twitter.com/N14Kr93Myf

— Texas State MBB (@TXStateMBB) February 17, 2023

 
Morgan knotted the score just over a minute into the second half on a spinning fadeaway mid-range jumper. Of the next 12 points, 10 would be scored by the Mountaineers to take the lead for good.
 
TXST was able to get within two twice with the last coming on a three-pointer from Harrell with 3:03 remaining to make it 69-67.

Big 3 from Twelve!#EatEmUp x @MasonHarrell12 pic.twitter.com/TRTf11huMk

— Texas State MBB (@TXStateMBB) February 17, 2023

 
Next up for the Bobcats is a trip to South Carolina to face Coastal Carolina on Saturday. Tip for the game is at 1 p.m. CT.
 
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