ATHENS, Ohio – Texas State women's basketball won 80-71 on the road for its second straight road win en route to head coach
Zenarae Antoine reaching the 200
th win of her career. Antoine has won all 200 games of her career at Texas State.
Highlighting the night was three players in double-digits,
Ja'Niah Henson (22 points),
Sierra Dickson (14 points) and
Jaylin Foster (11 points). The three combined for 47 of the Bobcats 80 points on the way to the win. Dickson's 14 points were a career high for her as she shot 5-9 from the field going 3-5 from beyond the arc as well.
The Bobcats shot 8-16 from three in this one as Ohio shot just 4-20 from beyond the arc. The Bobcats also had a season-high free throw shooting percentage, going 26-28 on the night, which was a difference maker in the Bobcats win on the road.
Ultimately, the Bobcats 23-point third quarter was the difference between the two sides in this one. While the Bobcats shot 7-12 and capitalized on free throw attempts, going 7-7, the Texas State outscored Ohio 23-12 in the third. Heading into the fourth quarter, the Bobcats held a 56-47 lead. When the two sides both scored 24 in the final quarter, the Bobcats still came out on top.
WHAT HEAD COACH ZENARAE ANTOINE SAID: "I'm happy because we got a sweep as a team [this week]. I can't lie, Ohio is my old stomping grounds… so there's a lot of nostalgia for me when I'm on this court. I have a lot of respect for what Bob has done with this program. [My 200
th win] happening at OU, a place I truly cherished in my time here, both as a grad student and a coach, is awesome."
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Bobcats got out to an 11-3 lead in the opening five minutes of the game that gave them momentum in the early goings of the game. Led by five points from Henson and Dickson in the first quarter, the Bobcats were able to take a 21-18 lead in the first quarter.
The second quarter the home side was able to outscore Texas State and take a lead. While holding Texas State to just 12 points, Ohio scored 17 and went into the halftime break with a lead three-point lead.
The third quarter was all Texas State, though. With seven Bobcats combining for 23 points, Texas State silence Ohio's offense. Henson led with seven points, but it was a total team effort to win the quarter. The Ohio Bobcats shot just 5-15 in the third, and the Bobcats capitalized off their rebounds and nabbed four steals to win the quarter. Headed into the fourth the Bobcats had a nine-point lead.
The final quarter, Texas State capitalized on free-throws. While scoring 24 points in the fourth, 13 of the Bobcats points came off free throws. Ohio had managed to limit Texas State's three-point shooting, but their foul shots were the difference maker as the Bobcats won 80-71 on the road in Athens.
STAT LEADERS
SCORES BY QUARTER
1st | Texas State 21, Ohio 18
2nd | Texas State 12, Ohio 17
3rd | Texas State 23, Ohio 12
4th | Texas State 24, Ohio 24
GAME NOTES
- The Bobcats are now 13-12 on the season and 3-9 in conference play after the win at Ohio.
- With the win, the Bobcats helped the Sun Belt Conference women's basketball teams win the MAC-SBC Challenge in its inaugural year.
- Ja'Niah Henson had her 19th double-digit game of the season and her sixth game with 20+ points against Ohio.
- Henson's 14 made free-throw attempts are the first double-digit free throw makes game since Kennedy Taylor against Arkansas State in the 2023 season, where she made 10 of 11 in a single game. Previously this season Henson has gone 9-9 from the line, but this was her first game with double-digit attempts and double-digit makes.
UP NEXT
The 'Cats will stay on the road for two Sun Belt Conference showdowns. The Bobcats will head to Troy on Feb. 15 with that game starting at 5:15 before heading to Southern Miss on Feb. 17. The game versus Southern Miss will tip-off at noon. The Bobcats next home game will be Feb. 21 against conference leading Marshall at 7 pm inside Strahan Arena.
