For the second time in seven days, Southern Miss faced Texas State with the game being a second-half thriller that resulted in overtime.
After surviving with a close win in Hattiesburg on Monday, the outcome on Saturday night in San Marcos did not turn out in the Golden Eagles’ favor. A stifling three-point basket by Texas State guard Coleton Benson sunk Southern Miss (8-11, 3-4 Sun Belt) and gave the Bobcats (11-8, 4-3) an 85-82 win.
Scoring summary
Shooting just north of 50% from the floor in the first half, Southern Miss was in control for most of the opening period before a Bobcat run with two minutes remaining knotted the halftime score at 39-39.
Coming back out of the gates, Texas State went on an 8-0 run powered by two three-pointers from Benson until the Golden Eagles returned the favor with a 14-0 run of their own to go up 53-47. Southern Miss never relinquished that lead but went scoreless in the final three minutes to let the clock expire with the score at 77-77.
Southern Miss took the lead in overtime before Tylan Pope knocked down two free throws to give Texas State an 82-81 advantage. Neftali Alvarez tied the game at 82-82 when he hit one of two free throws but that’s when Benson’s three sealed the Bobcat victory.
Numbers never lie
- Denijay Harris led the way for Southern Miss, again, with 18 points and 14 rebounds. The big man added three blocks.
- Alvarez added 17 points, four assists, and two steals, while Cobie Montgomery had 16 points and went four of nine from beyond the arc.
- Leading the way for Texas State was Pope with 28 points, 12 rebounds, and five blocks. Benson knocked down five three-pointers to add 23 points.
- Both teams were neck and neck statistically, with each hovering around 40% from the field. Southern Miss narrowly led the rebounding battle (44-43) but turned the ball over five more times than its opponent.
- Southern Miss has yet to win a road game this season, moving to 0-8 with the loss to Texas State. The Golden Eagles have now lost two in a row after dropping its midweek contest at South Alabama.
Next up
Southern Miss will try to get its first road win of the season when it travels to Troy (11-7, 4-3) on Thursday, Jan. 23. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT and can be watched on ESPN+.