SAN MARCOS, Tex. -- Appalachian State men's basketball dropped a tough 74-71 road Sun Belt contest at Texas State on Thursday evening,
Ronshad Shabazz paced the Mountaineers (8-15, 3-7 SBC) with a game-high 23 points, to go along with three rebounds, two assists and a steal. It marks the 20th time this season he has scored in double figures and 95th time in his career.
Tyrell Johnson added 12 points on 5-of-9 (55.6 percent) shooting off the bench.
Adrian Delph and
Justin Forrest chipped in with 10 points each.
The first half was tight throughout and featured three ties and six lead changes. The Bobcats (18-5, 7-3 SBC) built a 24-17 lead, only to see the Black and Gold storm back and jump in front 35-34 on a three-pointer from
Tyrell Johnson with 2:52 remaining in the opening stanza. App State opened a three-point lead at 37-34, only to see Texas State tally four of the final five points of the half to tie the score at 38-38 at halftime.
In the second half, App State scored six of the first eight points to build a 46-40 lead. Texas State jumped back in front 57-56 later on the half, only to see the Mountaineers counter with the next four points, capped off by a layup from Delph, to take a 60-57 lead with 8:55 left to play.
The Bobcats used a late 9-0 run to turn a 62-59 deficit into a 68-62 lead with 4:04 remaining. App State pulled within two points at 70-68 with 1:26 left to play on a pair of free throws from Forrest. Texas State answered with four straight points to take a 74-68 lead, but the Mountaineers scored three straight points to cut the Bobcat lead to 74-71 with five seconds left.
The Black and Gold fouled on the ensuing inbound and Mason Harrell missed the front end of the one-and-one, with the Mountaineers grabbing the rebound and calling a timeout. App State threw a long pass and Forrest had a look at a three-pointer to tie the game, but it was off as the buzzer sounded.
Nijal Pearson led four Bobcats in double figures with 19 points and five rebounds. Tre Nottingham had 18 points, Jaylen Shead tallied 15 points and Alonzo Sule chipped in with 10 points in a reserve role.
Appalachian State will look to bounce back on Saturday at UT Arlington at 3 p.m. EST. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be heard on the Appalachian Sports Network from IMG Learfield College.
