In their final game inside Moody Coliseum for almost a month, the Wildcats beat the Texas State University Bobcats by 72-60. 

The Wildcats held the lead for the game’s duration after scoring at the 18:58 mark in the first half. The lead swelled to as much as 16 as the Wildcats continued to build momentum throughout the game. 

A key piece of the Wildcats’ success was their defense as they held the Bobcats to shoot just 40.5% from the field and 37.5% from behind the three-point line.

“I thought that’s as good as we’ve been defensively,” said Head Coach Brette Tanner. 

Senior guard Hunter Jack Madden led the team in scoring with 23 points on 7-11 shooting from the field and 6-8 from three. Madden added four rebounds and assists before fouling out late in the second half. 

“He shot with confidence,” Tanner said. “You’re open, you shoot it.” 

The Wildcats also got significant contributions from their bench, putting up 24 points compared to the Bobcats’ three points from their bench. 

“The thing I am most proud of is that guys came in off the bench and were ready to go,” Tanner said. “Extremely proud of those guys.” 

The Bobcats were unable to get their offense running for the majority of the game, making just two of their first nine shots through the 8:30 mark in the first half. 

Both teams have been known to play a physical style of basketball, which led to the 52 fouls between both teams. 

Tanner was unhappy with the number of fouls committed but was pleased with his team’s response to their mistakes.

“We fouled too much,” he said. “But when we foul we tend to play better.” 

Despite the win, Tanner wants the team to commit fewer turnovers. 

“We’ll get there,” he said. “Once we cut our turnovers down, I think we’ll start seeing even more success.”

The Wildcats will play Kennesaw State University on Wednesday before playing in the Basketball Travelers Invitational hosted by Montana State University on Nov. 25-26.