It's easy to win a game on the road when your team shoots fifty-eight percent from the three point arc, and that's exactly what the Long Island Blackbirds did on Tuesday night against the Texas State Bobcats. In front of 3,327 fans at Strahan Coliseum, along with WAC Commissioner Karl Benson, LIU came in to San Marcos, TX, and downed the Bobcats 91-67.
Early in the game, it looked as if fans would see a good contest, but with the Bobcats' lack of defensive competition, the game got out of hand in a hurry. It seemed as if Texas State was taking nothing but tough shots on their end while Long Island continually knocked down open threes and uncontested layups. Senior sharpshooter Kyle Johnson ended the first half with 13 points off of 5/7 shooting from the field and 3/4 beyond the arc. The blackbirds as a team finished the half shooting a whopping 6-11 (fifty-four percent) from three-point range. They were also out-rebounding the 'Cats 27 to 23, and it showed on the scoreboard as the home team was down 46 to 26. So clearly for me, the first half was more than a disappointment. Texas State shot twenty-seven percent from the field - yes, I know it's terrible - and eighteen percent from three-point land.
With most of the crowd sticking around for the final 20 minutes, there was a bit of optimism from the fans and myself about the 'Cats making a second-half comeback. However, that went out the door when the second half picked up right where the first one left off: with Texas State not playing defense and not knocking down shots. So by the 10:00 mark, when the Bobcats hadn't made any progress, all hope seemed to be lost. At one point, the lead had been pushed to almost 30 points in favor of the Blackbirds. It seemed as if nothing could could go right and the half could not move any slower for Bobcat Nation. When the clock hit zero, the remaining fans wearing maroon and gold, including myself, had a very somber look on their faces.
Looking back on this game, Texas State was never in it - at all. Like Coach Davalos said in his post-game interview, "there is nothing good that came from this one." This Bobcat Basketball team is way too talented to lose games like this. Games in which they don't compete on either end of the court, and lack defensively in a game in which they finish shooting thirty-one percent from the field (and twenty-five percent from three), just makes matters worse. There was a point in the game when Texas State's shooting percentage was as low as twenty-five percent. There also came a time in the game when Texas State's assist-to-turnover ratio was 8:16. State also got out-worked in the paint 38-24 and they only put up two fast break points.
Getting beat like the Bobcats did on Tuesday night is bad enough, but when they do it in front of 3,000+ fans at home, that loss is magnified a little more. However, unlike Coach Davalos, I do see some good coming from this loss: it put the team in check. So seeing as this is just the second game of a LONG season, and this is arguably one of the most talented teams in Texas State's history, I am confident that they will bounce back. They have the talent and senior leadership needed to reach their full potential, so this is just a minor speed bump in Texas State's road to winning the Southland Conference.
Texas State will be on the road for the first time this season this Saturday at 7:00 p.m. as they travel to Edinburg, TX, to take on UT-Pan American.
Robert Fisher, KTSW Assistant Sports Director
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