Bobcats begin road trip with win over Coastal Carolina

Texas State began its two-game road trip with a 65-61 win over Coastal Carolina on Thursday inside the HTC Center in Conway, S.C. 

The Bobcats (13-3, 2-1 Sun Belt) fell behind early in their matchup against the Chanticleers (7-8, 1-2). Coastal Carolina jumped out to a 5-0 lead and extended it to 13-5. 

But Texas State’s defense stiffened after the Chanticleers went up 17-11. The Bobcats held their opponent scoreless for a 5:22 span. They took advantage and took their first lead of the night at 19-17 when sophomore forward Quentin Scott sank his first career 3-pointer. 

Coastal Carolina evened the score at 21-21 but the Bobcats seized control of the opening half, building a lead as large as nine points. Texas State took a 40-31 advantage into the intermission after redshirt freshman forward Alonzo Sule scored a last-second bucket at the end of the period. 

The Bobcats built a 10-point lead twice early in the second half. But Coastal Carolina responded with a 12-4 run during a 7:24 span midway through the final frame. 

Junior guard Nijal Pearson scored a pair of jumpers to end the Chanticleer run and push the Bobcats lead back out to 57-50. 

Coastal Carolina, however, went on another run — This time an 8-0 run — to slice Texas State’s lead down to just 62-61 with 38 seconds remaining in regulation. 

A hook shot from junior forward Eric Terry gave the Bobcats a three-point advantage with 11 seconds left in the half. 

Coastal Carolina turned the ball over with just over three seconds left in the game and senior guard Tre Nottingham iced the game with a free throw to secure Texas State a 65-61 victory.

With Thursday’s win, Texas State remains undefeated at the HTC Center. The Bobcats are 3-0 in Conway, S.C. with all of its wins coming by four points or less. 

Senior forward Alex Peacock led the Bobcats with 13 points. He also amassed four rebounds, two assists and a steal. Pearson tallied 12 points and six rebounds and Terry scored 10 points.

Texas State finishes its road trip against Appalachian State on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Holmes Convocation Center in Boone, N.C.