Jackson scores 33 points as UTSA beats Texas State, 77-71

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Guard Jhivvan Jackson produced a season-high 33 points and added seven rebounds Saturday afternoon, leading the UTSA Roadrunners past the Texas State Bobcats, 77-71, in San Marcos.

Jackson hit 13 of 26 from the field as the Roadrunners (3-6) won their first road game of the season and claimed their first two-game winning streak.

Keaton Wallace scored 17 points and Erik Czumbel had 11 to deny the Bobcats (6-4).

Breaking from a three-point halftime lead, the Roadrunners stayed patient in their offense and hit six three-pointers after intermission.

Jackson nailed a big one with 4:48 remaining to make it a 10-point game. With a defender’s hand in his face, he leaned back and hoisted it high, drawing nothing but net.

“They’re a great defensive team and I knew they were going to come at me,” Jackson told the team’s radio broadcast. “But I had a couple of easy shots in the beginning. It was kind of just, my teammates helped me on the screens, and coach trusted me to take a few more shots. I mean, they were really just going in today.”

It was a big win for the Roadrunners, who started the season at 0-5.

“To be honest, this was a concerning game … because they’re so tough, so good defensively,” UTSA coach Steve Henson said. “We haven’t shown the ability to have strong possessions yet. We get clicking sometimes, but I was concerned that maybe we weren’t ready to have enough good offensive possessions to withstand their pressure, and we did.”

Guard Mason Harrell led the Bobcats with 19 points. Guard Caleb Asberry had 18. Nijal Pearson, Texas State’s best player, was held to 15 points on 5 of 15 shooting.

Pearson was 2 of 6 from the field in the second half and seemed frustrated at times by the UTSA defense.

First-half recap

Jackson came out hot, scoring 21 points in the first half as UTSA took a 37-34 lead on the Bobcats.

The game is being played in San Marcos at Strahan Arena, the home of the Bobcats.

Hitting nine of 16 from the field and three of seven from beyond the arc, Jackson paced the Roadrunners, who built a lead as large as nine points.

Mason Harrell hit a three with four seconds left in the half to pull the Bobcats to within three.

Records

UTSA 3-6
Texas State 6-4

Recently

Texas State played at the University of Houston on Wednesday night. The Cougars won 68-60 to snap the Bobcats’ four-game winning streak.

UTSA played at home on Tuesday, beating Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 89-67. It was UTSA’s first victory over an NCAA Division I team this season.