LAS VEGAS – The Resorts World Classic concluded for Texas State (6-4) with a 78-74 loss in overtime to Lehigh (3-6) on Saturday afternoon at the Resorts World Events Center.
 
"It was a hard-fought battle between two teams still figuring out their identities. Credit them for not letting go of the rope and forcing overtime," said head coach Terrence Johnson. "We did some good things in this game. Collectively, we were better as a group and had some guys step up in a major way. But we're in search of consistency and resilience. When we find that, we will find our identity."
 
DJ Hall recorded a double-double with career-highs of 23 points and 12 rebounds while also handing out three assists and recording three steals. He was 9-of-11 from the field and knocked down all five of his free throw attempts. Hall is the first Bobcat freshman with a 20-10 double-double since Nijal Pearson had a 23-point, 11-rebound performance against McNeese on Nov. 29, 2016.
 
Adding 15 points on 6-of-14 shooting was Mark Drone. Also reaching double-figures was Kaden Gumbs with 11 points and he dished out three assists.
 
The Bobcats outrebounded the Mountain Hawks 40-27 and had a 16-7 advantage on the offensive glass that led to a 12-2 lead in second chance points. However, Lehigh was deadly from beyond the arc with 13 of its 29 made shots being three-pointers and shooting 13-of-25 (52.0%) from deep.
 
The Bobcats opened the game by scoring eight of the first 11 points with half of them coming from Hall. He would make a layup with 14:45 on the clock to give TXST its largest lead of the first half at 14-7.
 
A 9-2 run by the Mountain Hawks that saw them knock down three treys tied the game. They would follow with a 10-0 run over a 3:36 minute span to go up 28-22.
 
Texas State countered with eight consecutive points with a jumper off the glass by Hall being the capper to put the team back in front.
 
Nasir Whitlock made two three-pointers down the stretch while Franck Emmou and Gumbs both knocked down jumpers as the team went into halftime tied at 34-34.
 
It was a back-and-forth affair throughout the second half. The largest lead for either team was four by the Bobcats with 3:34 left in regulation.
 
Hall put TXST up 66-64 with 7.3 left in the second half on a turnaround fadeaway jumper from the left baseline. Whitlock would tie the game with a jumper just before the buzzer sounded to send the game to overtime.
 
Lehigh went up 72-69 on a dunk from Hank Alvery. Two free throws apiece from Hall and Gumbs put Texas State back in front by a point with 1:53 showing on the clock. The Mountain Hawks would close out the game on a 6-1 run with all seven of the combined points coming at the charity stripe.
 
Next for the Bobcats is a trip to Houston to take on Rice on Wednesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. at the Tudor Fieldhouse.
 
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