TXST knocks off Arkansas State for third-straight win

Texas State survived a furious Arkansas State comeback for as the Bobcats won a thrilling 61-58 victory over the Red Wolves.

After starting conference play 0-2, head basketball coach Terrence Johnson’s squad has responded with three consecutive impressive road wins over James Madison, South Alabama and Arkansas State.

“I’m proud of my guys,” Johnson said. “We’re growing, understanding how to lead and follow, and how to move on to the next play. We weren’t perfect tonight but we were resilient. I thought our freshmen stepped up in a major way tonight. Great road win for us. A total team effort.”

The first half was a defensive slugfest with both the Bobcats and the Red Wolves trading a lead no larger than three points.

Following a pair of Mason Harrell free throws, the game was tied at 15-15 with 6:08 left in the first half.

The next Arkansas State possession ended when freshman forward Davion Sykes stole and delivered the dunk to give the Bobcats a 17-15 lead.

Junior guard Brandon Davis responded to the dunk by hitting the 3-point shot to give the Bobcats their largest lead of the first half at 20-15.

Arkansas State tied the game back up at 20-20 before taking a 22-20 lead with just 2:20 remaining in the first half.

Texas State retook the lead at 26-24 following a Nighael Caesar layup before senior guard Drue Drinnon took the ball and drove down the court to hit a buzzer beating layup to hand Texas State a 28-24 lead at halftime.

The Bobcats never failed to give up the lead to the Red Wolves in the second half and stayed in control of most of the game despite a late comeback by Arkansas State in the waning minutes of the game.

Texas State looked to add onto their road winning streak and exact revenge as the Bobcats traveled to Louisiana Monroe  to take on the Warhawks on Saturday. The game began after press time.