Friday night’s 78-65 win over Southern Utah (3-3) was a complete game for the Bobcats (4-2). 
Texas State brought its best to Hawaii as it faced off against the Thunderbirds in the first game of the Patty Mills North Shore Classic. Every single Bobcat who logged a minute put the ball in the basket, allowing Texas State’s bench to outscore Southern Utah’s reserves 24-4. 
Senior guard Mason Harrell led the team in scoring with 18. Three other Bobcats were able to crack double digits as well, including sophomore forward Brandon Love who scored a career-high 10 points. Freshman forward Davion Sykes stuffed the stat sheet with his 10 points, four steals and two blocks.
Texas State got on the board first with an opening three from junior guard Dylan Dawson. However, the Thunderbirds were then able to go on a 14-5 run, taking advantage of a cold stretch from Texas State. 
From there, the teams went bucket-for-bucket until the Bobcats were able to reclaim the lead at 21-20 with 7:25 to play in the half. After taking the lead, Texas State went on a 13-6 run, to take the game into halftime at 34-26. 
The Bobcats continued to dominate early in the second frame, extending its lead all the way to 18 after junior forward Tuongthach Gatkek blocked a shot and scored a put-back layup on the other end. 
The Thunderbirds were no easy out though. A steal and fast-break dunk from sophomore guard Drake Allen cut the Texas State lead to 11. Another Dawson 3-pointer and a layup from Sykes helped the Bobcats replenish their lead, but the Thunderbirds weren’t done.
Southern Utah then went on a 13-2 run to cut the lead to just five points at 58-53 with just 4:48 left in the game. 
Senior guard Drue Drinnon scored a layup and then stole the ball on the defensive end to allow Harrell to add two points of his own. Another bucket from Harrell after a block from Sykes pushed the lead back up to 11 and the Bobcats were able to make good on free throws to close out the contest with a win. 
After the game, coach Terrence Johnson was proud of his team’s total effort. Johnson said he hopes to see more of what he saw his team do against Southern Utah.
“I thought it was a hard-fought game and Southern Utah is a well-coached team. They can give many teams problems, but I’m proud of my team. They stepped up, locked into our defensive principles, and showed the amount of toughness and grit that it takes to be a two-time championship team in the Sun Belt,” Johnson said.