Tag Archives: Texas State Bobcats

Texas State edges UTSA, 69-68, in Interstate 35 thriller

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Texas State players and fans celebrate a 69-68 victory Saturday afternoon at the UTSA Convocation Center.

An impromptu party materialized behind the visitors’ bench at the UTSA Convocation Center late Saturday afternoon.

For fans of the Texas State Bobcats, the celebration likely carried on late into the night following a pulsating 69-68 victory over the Roadrunners.

As for Texas State coach Danny Kaspar, he had other plans.

“I’ll sleep better tonight,” he said.

At one juncture near the end of the game, Kaspar’s team seemed to be coming unglued.

It committed a turnover in front of the Texas State bench, and with 24 seconds remaining, UTSA’s Jhivvan Jackson sank two free throws to give the Roadrunners a 68-65 lead.

Not to be denied, the Bobcats answered with 13 seconds left on a clutch, game-tying, three-point shot from the top of the arc by guard Nijal Pearson.

UTSA, in response, rushed it upcourt with its own star on the dribble.

Jackson, on the right wing, created separation from a defender with a cross-over dribble, but his three-point jumper for the lead rimmed out.

“A shot I take hundreds of times every day,” Jackson lamented.

As for the rebound, UTSA’s Byron Frohnen appeared to get his hands on it, but he lost control, and it caromed off to the side, in front of the Roadrunners’ bench.

From there, Texas State’s Jaylen Shead secured it and started his dribble upcourt.

Suddenly, UTSA’s Keaton Wallace confronted Shead, grabbing at the ball, as a referee whistled him for a foul in front of the UTSA bench.

After a clock re-set, Shead hit the first free throw for the final point of the game with 0.9 seconds left.

Remembering the moment when he heard victory cheers from the Texas State fans, Kaspar admitted that it felt good. He also said he felt fortunate to win, under the circumstances.

In discussing the final, frantic seconds, the coach said, “We got to hit a three to win the game, probably. We hit it. They’re going to have a shot to win the game. They don’t (make it), and we get a foul out of it.

“So, I got to go to church tomorrow and say thank you.”

Records

Texas State 7-1
UTSA 2-6

The I-35 rivalry

San Marcos-based Texas State, from the Sun Belt Conference, broke a two-game losing streak in the series to UTSA. The Bobcats earned a measure of redemption after blowing a late nine-point lead in a one-point loss last year at home. UTSA, from Conference USA, still leads the overall series, 35-25.

Individuals

Texas State — Nijal Pearson, 26 points on 10 of 21 shooting, including 5 threes. Also seven rebounds, a block and a steal. Alex Peacock, 15 points on 5 of 8 shooting. Alonzo Sule, eight points off the bench, on 3 of 6 from the field.

UTSA — Jackson, 22 points on 6 of 18 shooting. He hit 5 of 11 from three. Keaton Wallace, 19 points. Giovanni De Nicolao, 13.


Texas State’s Nijal Pearson steps back and drills a three to tie the game with 13 seconds left.

Pearson’s surge

Pearson, a 6-foot-5 junior from Beaumont Central, continues to play at a high level. He has scored 33, 25 and 26 points in his last three games, respectively.

In torching the Roadrunners, he scored in a variety of ways. On a few of his three-pointers, Pearson stepped back and swished long balls with a hand in his face.

One of his buckets in the first half came on a sweet Euro-step move, when he twisted through defenders and sank a layup (see video below).

Establishing an identity

UTSA had plenty of chances to take charge of the game but shot poorly from the field, hitting only 36.4 percent for the game, including 9 of 25 in the first half and 11 of 30 in the second half.

“We’re taking some baby steps,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said. “But we got a lot of work to do if we’re going to be a really, really good team. I think we’ve got the pieces to do that.

“We’ve still got to figure out what our identity is going to be. We’re not playing real, real fast. We’re not defending at a real high level. We’re kind of average in a lot of areas right now.

“If we’re going to be a really good team, we need to establish an identity.”


UTSA point guard Giovanni De Nicolao hits a wild runner in the opening minute Saturday against Texas State.

Lamenting the late miss

UTSA guard Jhivvan Jackson, on his three-point shot that rimmed out: “It’s a shot I take hundreds of times every day. I thought it was a great shot, too, and the team wanted me to take it. I took it. It just didn’t fall.”

The foul

Henson seemed to think that Wallace was overly aggressive on the play the resulted in the late whistle, even though calls like that are often times not called at all.

“He went and grabbed the ball with two hands,” Henson said. “There was clearly contact there. It was right in front of me. I didn’t get a great look at it.

“It’s the kind of play, you have to let it go. As much as he wanted to go get the basketball, kinda had to let that one go.”

Pearson leads Texas State into the UTSA Convocation Center

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Texas State guard Nijal Pearson drives around Rice’s Chris Mullins Wednesday night in San Marcos. — Courtesy photo by Brooke Adams

SAN MARCOS — Deep down inside, Texas State shooting guard Nijal Pearson always knew he could play at a high level in NCAA Division I basketball.

“I always figured it would come in due time,” the 6-foot-5 junior said Friday afternoon.

Even though Pearson didn’t have the total skill package at Beaumont Central High School, Texas State coach Danny Kaspar said he could see the potential.

“He’s like some of my players at Stephen F. Austin,” the coach said. “They weren’t recruited very hard, and the knock on them was, they were not great shooters.”

On the other hand, Kaspar said he always sees intangibles in some young men, particularly those who excel both in academics and athletics.

He said he tells them honestly that they will need to work on their offense.

“You just knew (Pearson) would do it,” Kaspar said. “He was in, I want to say, the top ten (academically) in his (high school graduating) class. He’s one of our best students here. So, he just competes in every way, shape or form. In the classroom. On the court.

“(He) is very much a competitor. You challenge him about getting in the gym and putting up 400 and 500 shots a day, and he responds.”

The work has paid off for Pearson, who leads the Bobcats in scoring at 21 points per game coming into a weekend road test against the UTSA Roadrunners.

Pearson has emerged as the story of the season so far for Texas State (6-1) as it prepares to play UTSA (2-5) on Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center.

Tipoff is at 3 p.m.

The Bobcats have won four straight, including three last week at the Portland Classic in Oregon and again Wednesday night at home against Rice.

Pearson scored a career-high 33 in the finale against the Portland Pilots, and then added 25 for good measure in a 74-60 victory over the Owls.

“We’re just having fun playing together, sharing the ball and playing defense,” he said. “For the most part, we figured we were a pretty good team. We knew in the summer time. So, I wouldn’t say we are really high right now. Basically, we’re doing what we’re expected to do.”

Beating UTSA is important to Pearson, who is 0-2 in his career against the Roadrunners.

“It’s a rivalry game,” he said. “I’m excited about playing in it. I don’t think I’ve made my mark in a UTSA-Texas State game yet, so, I’m excited that I get a chance to do that tomorrow. I’m anxious to play.”

Last year’s loss still stings a bit, because UTSA rallied in the last 70 seconds to erase a nine-point deficit and win, 79-78.

Asked what he remembers about last year, he shrugged and said simply, just that the Bobcats lost.

Because of a lock-down defense yielding only 37 percent shooting per game, Texas State would seem to have a better chance this year against the Roadrunners, who have struggled some offensively.

Pearson’s offense, meanwhile, has been consistently good.

He is shooting 52.9 percent from the field, including 53.2 percent from the three-point line. On top of that, he’s averaging 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.6 steals.

Pearson is not the same player that shot 43 percent as a freshman and 39 percent as a sophomore.

“I work hard on my game,” he said. “I just kept working. I knew eventually it was going to happen. I just didn’t know when … But, I’m just staying with it. (I’m trying to) focus, letting the game come to me, having fun out there.”

Pearson scores 25 as Texas State knocks off Rice, 74-60

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Junior guard Nijal Pearson hit five 3-point baskets en route to 25 points Wednesday night, pacing the Texas State Bobcats past the Rice Owls, 74-60, in San Marcos.

Texas State (6-1) has won four straight leading into a Saturday afternoon road game at UTSA.

In the game played at Strahan Arena, the Bobcats beat the Owls 40-30 on the boards and made 11 of 27 shots from beyond the arc.

Chris Mullins led the Owls (3-5) with 12 points and four steals.

Pearson, from Beaumont, will come into San Antonio leading Texas State in scoring at 21 points per game.

The 6-5 guard has scored a combined 58 points in his last two games, including 33 against in a 91-68 win at Portland on Saturday night in Oregon.

As a team, the Bobcats are limiting opponents to 57.7 points on 37 percent shooting.

Former San Marcos star at Texas haunts the Texas State Bobcats

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Texas sophomore David Hamilton continued to inflict damage on the Texas State pitching staff Tuesday night, stroking four hits in a 6-2 victory for the 15th-ranked Longhorns.

The former star at San Marcos High School was 4 for 5 with a home run and two RBI against the Bobcats.

Weather forced a two-hour delay during the fourth inning of the game played at UFCU Disch-Falk Field in Austin, the home of the Longhorns.

In six career games against San Marcos-based Texas State, Hamilton is 11 for 19 (.579) with three homers, nine RBI, six runs scored, six walks, and three stolen bases.

Records

Texas 34-18
Texas State 25-26-1

Coming up

TCU at Texas, Thursday
Texas State at UT-Arlington, Thursday

Texas State beats Louisiana to clinch Sun Belt tournament berth

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Trailing by four runs early, the Texas State Bobcats rallied to beat Louisiana 8-6 Sunday afternoon on ‘Senior Day,’ clinching both the series and a berth in the Sun Belt Conference tournament.

Texas State fell behind 4-0 in the top of the first, but did not back down.

By the end of the second innning, the Bobcats had pulled within one. In the fourth, they scored twice to take a 6-5 lead and never trailed again.

Louisiana won the first game of the series, 7-4, on Friday. Texas State bounced back to win 6-5 on Saturday.

By Sunday, they had won again, earning their second series victory over the Ragin’ Cajuns and their first since 2004.

Records

Texas State 25-25, 13-14
Louisiana 29-23, 15-12

Highlights

Senior Luke Sherley bashed three hits, including his fifth home run of the season, and scored three runs. Jacob Almendarez also had three hits and one RBI. Freshman Dalton Shuffield (from Johnson High School) went two for six.

Wes Engle started on the mound but was removed after failing to record an out. He did not concede a hit, but all three batters he faced reached base and scored, prompting coaches to call on Zachary Leigh (2-3).

The sophomore pitched well in earning the victory, giving up two runs on five hits in seven innings. Sherley got the save by pitching the ninth, his first appearance as a pitcher since high school.

Coming up

The Bobcats play a non-conference game at Texas on Tuesday. They finish with three on the road in the Sun Belt against UT-Arlington. The Sun Belt tournament is set for May 22-27 in Lafayette, Louisiana.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi edges UIW, 5-4, in 11 innings

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Jackson Owens blooped a two-out hit down the right field line to drive in the winning run, as the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders defeated visiting Incarnate Word 5-4 in 11 innings Friday night in Southland Conference baseball.

With runners at second and third and UIW pitcher Luke Taggart trying to send the game to the 12th, Owens popped a ball into short right right.

When nobody from UIW could catch it before it hit the ground, Thomas Jeffries crossed home plate for the walk-off victory, keeping the Islanders’ SLC postseason hopes alive.

With the loss, UIW dropped into seventh place in the SLC standings, two games in the loss column out of eighth. A&M-Corpus Christi moved into a tie for 10th.

Eight teams qualify for the SLC tournament. UIW plays again in Corpus Christi on Saturday at 4 p.m. and on Sunday at 1 p.m.

The Cardinals complete their regular-season conference schedule with three games at home next week against the first-place Sam Houston State Bearkats.

Records

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi — 25-26, 9-16
Incarnate Word — 29-21, 13-12

Hayden Cantrelle stroked five hits Friday night, and the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns defeated Texas State 7-4 in the Sun Belt Conference at San Marcos.

The teams play again Saturday at 4 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. in the Bobcats’ final home series this season.

Louisiana scored one run in the second inning and three in the fifth for a 4-0 lead.

In response, Texas State scored three times in the bottom of the fifth to pull within 4-3.

But the Bobcats could never gain the lead and ended up falling to 1-6 in their last seven games.

Texas State’s Nicholas Fraze (5-4) took the loss after exiting in the sixth inning trailing 5-3. He gave up 11 hits in five and 1/3.

Louisiana’s Colton Schmidt (7-0) pitched into the seventh inning for the victory.

Records

Louisiana — 29-21, 15-10
Texas State — 23-25-1, 11-14

Area Division I baseball teams play for momentum in stretch run

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With two weeks left before conference tournament play commences, local and area NCAA Division I baseball teams will need to start winning to create momentum for championship runs. Here’s the breakdown:

Summary: In Conference USA, if you take your eye off the ball, you can get smacked in the nose. UTSA can’t afford to let that happen this week. The fifth-place Roadrunners (26-20, 12-11) are in good position to make the eight-team C-USA tournament. But if they have any postseason championship aspirations, they need win a road series this weekend against the last-place Old Dominion Monarchs (14-31, 6-17) and then follow suit next week against Charlotte (27-20, 13-11) at home.

Leaders

Batting: Bryan Arias (.340, 41 runs, 6 HR), Ben Brookover (.322, 7 HR, 46 RBI), Trent Bowles (.316, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 13 SB).

Pitching: Steven Dressler (5-2, 2.90), Chance Kirby (4-4, 2.94), Karan Patel (2-3, 4.47), Derek Craft (3-4, 1.79).

Summary: Incarnate Word (29-20, 13-11) is bouncing back in baseball at just the right time. Eligible to play in the Southland Conference tournament after a four-year wait in transition from NCAA Division II, the Cardinals are tied for fifth with a top-eight finish necessary to extend the season. UIW plays at Texas A&M Corpus Christi (24-26, 8-16) this weekend before hosting powerful Sam Houston State (33-16, 19-5) next week. Sam Houston is the SLC’s No. 1 program.

Leaders

Batting: Eddy Gonzales (.381), Ridge Rogers (.355), Kyle Bergeron (.343, 6 HR, 46 RBI).

Pitching: Cody Allen (2-3, 2.47, 5 saves), Luke Taggart (4-3, 3.87), Tyler Miller (3-3, 3.99).

Summary: It’s been a struggle lately for the Texas State Bobcats, who have lost five of their last six. But they remain in position to reach the Sun Belt Conference tournament. Texas State (23-24-1, 11-13) hosts Louisiana (28-21, 14-10) this weekend. The Bobcats will finish on the road against UT-Arlington (21-27, 11-13).

Leaders

Batting: Dalton Shuffield (.300), Jonathan Ortega (.294, 32 RBI), Derek Scheible (.234, 10 HR, 33 RBI).

Pitching: Nicholas Fraze (5-3, 2.93), Connor Reich (5-3, 3.45).

Louisiana hits 13 threes, downs Texas State, 80-55

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Guard Malik Marquetti knocked down five of his team’s 13 three-point field goals Saturday afternoon, lifting the streaking Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns to an 80-55 victory over Texas State.

Playing a game for the Sun Belt Conference lead at Texas State’s Strahan Coliseum, the Cajuns (17-3, 7-0) won their seventh in a row by smothering Bobcats, who shot only 32 percent shooting from the field.

As a result, Texas State (13-8, 6-2) had its six-game winning streak snapped.

Marquetti and Justin Miller hurt Texas State badly with perimeter shooting.

A transfer from Southern Cal, Marquetti hit 5 of 6 from three-point range. Miller knocked down 4 of 7.

Miller and starting guard Frank Bartley IV scored 14 apiece for the Cajuns, from Lafayette, La.

Judson grad Shelby Adams led the Bobcats with 10 points off the bench. But the Bobcats’ leading scorers — Nijal Pearson and Tre Nottingham — were held in check with five apiece.

Pearson was limited to 2 of 13 shooting.

The Bobcats entered the match-up with high hopes, having knocked off their last six foes, including Coastal Carolina, South Alabama, Troy, Arkansas State, Arkansas-Little Rock and Louisiana-Monroe.