Mandalyn Lewallen

Texas State graduate student guard Ja’Niah Henson (1) dribbles past Marshall’s defense, Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, at Strahan Arena.

Senior guard Ja’Niah Henson scored a game-high 19 points as Texas State women’s basketball (13-15, 3-12 Sun Belt Conference) was defeated 85-59 by Marshall University (20-6, 14-1 Sun Belt Conference) at Strahan Arena on Wednesday night.

“Hats off to Marshall; there’s a reason why [they’re] the number one team [in the Sun Belt].” Texas State Head Coach Zenarae Antoine said.

Henson shot a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line and 5-for-6 from the field in 26 minutes of action. Graduate student guard Timia Jefferson was Texas State’s second-leading scorer with 10 points off the bench in 19 minutes, shooting 4-for-6 from the field.

Texas State started fast, with Henson knocking down a three and getting fouled in the process to open the game. The Bobcats’ hot shooting continued throughout the first quarter, giving them a 23-15 lead going into the second quarter.

The second quarter was a different story as Henson, along with the rest of the Bobcat offense went cold. The Thundering Herd took advantage by going on a 27-5 run to establish a 42-28 halftime lead. After scoring 15 points in the first quarter, Henson was held in check by the Thundering Herd defense, only scoring four points for the remainder of the game.

The Marshall defense forced Texas State to commit 33 turnovers while the Bobcats only forced 20 turnovers. Marshall capitalized off the turnovers scoring 28 points compared to Texas State’s 14.

“They do a great job of turning people over,” Antoine said. “Even people who are low turnover teams, they turn the ball over at a high rate [against Marshall], and unfortunately, we [were] on the receiving end of that.”

After starting slow, Marshall got its offense going in the second quarter, making 17 three’s compared to Texas State’s one over the final three quarters. Sophomore guard Sydni Scott had six of Marshall’s 17 three’s to finish the game with 18 points. Graduate student guard Abby Beeman and sophomore forward Meredith Maier added 18 and 17 points, respectively.

A 27-point fourth-quarter performance by the Thundering Herd was enough to put the game to rest. The Marshall starting lineup outscored Texas State’s 65-34.

With only three games remaining before the conference tournament, the Bobcats will attempt to get back on track against their next opponent the University of Louisiana-Lafayette (13-12, 8-7 Sun Belt Conference).

“Ball security is going to be important, as well as boxing out,” Antoine said. “We are going to take that learning lesson into the game against [Louisiana] Lafayette, that I know we have to do better.”

Tip-off between Texas State and Louisiana-Lafayette is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, at Strahan Arena. The game will be available to stream on ESPN+.