Texas State men’s basketball (2-4) was defeated by Southern Utah University (2-3) 74-67 Wednesday afternoon at the Thomas Assembly Center in Ruston, Louisiana.
The previous time these two teams met was last season in the Patty Mills North Shore Classic Tournament, resulting in a 78-65 Bobcat win. With the loss Texas State finishes the Louisiana Tech MTE in last place.
Freshman guard Kaden Gumbs recorded his first double figures performance as a Bobcat, finishing with 15 points, 10 rebounds and four assists.
Junior guard Josh O’Garro scored 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Junior forward Brandon Love blocked three shots extending his streak of games with multiple rejections to seven.
Texas State started the game strong jumping out to a early 15-6 lead in the first half. However, the Thunderbirds closed out the half on a 22-10 run to take a 28-25 lead into halftime.
The Bobcats scored the first points of the second half to cut the deficit to one point but that was as close as they would come to regaining the lead. The Thunderbirds quickly extended their lead to seven with layups and free throws. The lead grew to 15 at one point as Southern Utah cruised to its second victory of the season.
Redshirt junior guard Zion Young led the way for the Thunderbirds with a game-high 25 points on 8-13 from the field and seven rebounds. Junior guard Dominique Ford also filled the stat sheet with 16 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Texas State will attempt to break its two-game losing streak against its next opponent the University of Texas at Arlington (2-2). The Mavericks went 11-21 overall and 6-12 in the Western Athletic Conference last season.
Tip-off between Texas State and UT-Arlington is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 25, at College Park Center in Arlington. The game will be available to stream on ESPN+ and the Varsity Network.
