Feb. 16, 2008

Box Score

SAN MARCOS, Texas - Darren Hopkins tied his career-high with 26 points to lead six players in double figures as Lamar defeated Texas State, 101-90, at Strahan Coliseum on Saturday.

Lamar (15-8, 9-1 Southland) shot 56 percent and made 11 3-pointers for the second-consecutive game. The Cardinals extended their win streak to eight games and won four-consecutive road contests for the first time since the 1983-84 season.

The Cardinals made 24-of-37 free throws with 11-of-13 in the final two minutes to keep the Bobcats at bay. Kenny Dawkins finished with a season-high 23 points to go along with eight assists - for the second-straight game - and three steals. Jay Brown was 6-of-8 for 14 points in a season-best 21 minutes, while Currye Todd had 13, Justin Nabors 11 and Lamar Sanders 10 on 4-of-4 shooting.

With Lamar holding a 20-19 lead with 11:40 left in the half, the Cardinals went on a 26-7 run in which the Bobcats failed to make a basket, scoring all seven points from the free throw line. Texas State went 8:55 between field goals before a Jonathan Sloan old-fashioned three-point play made it 46-29 Lamar with 2:45 remaining.

Lamar went in to the locker room with a 51-33 advantage. The Cardinals were led by Hopkins' 12 points at the break. Dawkins didn't score his first points until 12 minutes into the half but finished with 10 points. Todd also had 10 for the Cardinals who shot a blistering 59 percent and were 8-of-16 from behind the 3-point arc.

The Cards extended their lead to 21 on a Hopkins 3-pointer to open the second half before settling into a steady back-and-forth rhythm with the Bobcats. Lamar led by 79-60 with 7:34 left on a pair of Dawkins free throws before Texas State used a 10-1 run to cut the Lamar lead to 80-70 with 6:00 on the clock. The lead stayed around 10 points and never got under eight the rest of the game thanks to a steady free throw effort by Lamar down the stretch.

Texas State (11-13, 4-7) also had six players in double-figures, led by Matt Fullenwider with 18 on five 3-pointers. Brandon Bush had 17 and seven rebounds. The Bobcats out-rebounded the Cardinals 46-29 but Lamar turned 23 Texas State turnovers into a 31-15 edge in points off turnovers.

Lamar will return home for a pair of games next week against Central Arkansas on Thursday and Northwestern State for Homecoming on Saturday.