TROY, Ala. – Senior Mark Drone and freshman DJ Hall combined for 42 points Wednesday afternoon in Trojan Aren. However, Texas State (8-7, 1-2 Sun Belt) fell 100-80 to Troy (9-5, 2-0 Sun Belt).
 
Hall scored a game-high 22 points, one shy of his career best, on 10-of-16 shooting and went 2-for-3 on three-pointers. He just missed a double-double with nine rebounds and also handed out four assists.
 
Drone connected on 8-of-17 shot attempts with two made treys to total 20 points. The Jackson, Mississippi native set a new career-high with eight assists while also blocking a shot and recording a steal.
 
Also reaching double-digits was Franck Emmou with 13 points off the bench. He made 4-of-8 shots and was 2-for-4 from beyond the arc. Coming off the bench, Jalen Bolden contributed eight points and six rebounds.
 
The Bobcats ended up shooting 49.2% (31-of-63) for the game and connected on 9-of-20 (45.0%) three-pointers. However, the Trojans made 61.4% (35-of-57) of their shots, were 10-of-16 (62.5%) from beyond the arc and was 20-of-32 at the free throw line while TXST attempted just 14 attempts at the charity stripe.
 
"Today was a typical Sun Belt road game. I thought the home team played with the level of energy and physicality that was needed to control the game from start to finish," said head coach Terrence Johnson. "We're searching for our competitive identity and we have yet to find it. WE have to get back to the drawing board and address these issues that continue to plague us on the road."
 
Hall connected on his first career collegiate three-pointer to put TXST up 7-4 nearly two minutes into the contest. The Bobcats would lead by three twice more until Troy tied the contest on two free throws at the 14:45 mark.
 
After a jumper by Hall put the Bobcats back in front by two, the Trojans went on a 14-0 run over a 5:09 minute span. Ending the scoring drought was Emmou when he knocked down a free throw.
 
Hall converted a layup with 8:20 showing on the clock to start an 8-0 run for Texas State that cut the deficit to 28-23.
 
Robert Fields would make tip-in a missed shot to again pull the Bobcats to within five with 4:22 left in the opening half. Afterwards, Troy would end the period scoring 13 of last 19 points to take a 12-point advantage into the break.
 
The hosts held the lead throughout the second half. The closest that Texas State got was 55-49 with 15:13 remaining in the game after a three-pointer by Emmou and two made free throws from Drone.
 
Back-to-back-to-back treys from Drone, Emmou and Bolden, respectively, cut the deficit to eight with 3:39 to play. However, the Trojans ended the game with a 14-2 run.
 
Next up for the Bobcats is a road game at ULM on Saturday with tip scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
 
Stay up to date on everything Texas State men's basketball by following the team on Facebook,  Twitter, and Instagram.