MONROE, La. –  Jalen Bolden recorded his third 20-point game of the season to lead four Warhawks in double figures as the ULM men's basketball team (6-20, 2-11 Sun Belt Conference) dropped its first home game of a two-game homestand to Texas State (13-13, 6-7) on Thursday (Feb. 13) night inside Fant-Ewing Coliseum.

Texas State's Tylan Pope, a Franklinton, La. native, led all scorers with 22 points to lead the Bobcats to their sixth conference win. The Bobcats shot 49.2% from the field and came away with 10 steals as a team. Dylan Dawson picked up three steals and pumped in 11 points while Tyrel Morgan finished with 10 points and a pair of steals. Drue Drinnon facilitated the offense and handed out six assists while Christian Turner hauled in nine boards.

Bolden connected on seven field goal attempts and made six free throws in his 20-point performance. The Zachary, La. native added seven rebounds and a team-high four steals. Coltie Young netted 12 points and drained two 3-point buckets. Makai Willis also recorded 12 points while Micah Caster poured in 11 points, all coming in the second half. It was the first time Caster reached double figures in his collegiate career as he led ULM with a trio of assists.
 
The Warhawks got on the board first with a strong finish at the rim by Willis. ULM continued to outpace the Bobcats early in the first half with outstanding defense from Bolden that was highlighted by two steals in the first eight minutes of play. ULM led 16-9 with 12:42 left in the first half after a steal-and-score by Bolden forced a Bobcats' timeout. Texas State quickly responded with an 11-0 scoring run, generated by two 3-pointers from Mark Drone and seized control of a 20-16 lead with 9:08 remaining in the first half. The Warhawks responded and raced back with a 7-0 run, cutting the Texas State lead to just one with 4:56 left in the half. The Bobcats closed out the the half with six unanswered points and took a 34-27 advantage into the locker room at the break. Bolden led the Warhawks with 10 points, shooting 3-7 from the field.
 
Caster opened the second half with a layup, shrinking the Bobcats' lead to just five. The Bobcats countered with a three and layup by Pope to bring the Texas State lead to ten with 18:43 left in the second half. Caster increased his scoring total to eight in the early minutes of the second half. The Bobcats managed to extended the lead to 17, and held a 58-41 cushion with 11:36 left. The Warhawks managed to trim the 'Cats lead to nine after a Caster's second 3-point bucket  completed an 8-0 scoring spree with less than eight minutes remaining. Texas State ended the ULM run and ripped off 12-2 scoring run that increased the lead back to double figures for the remainder of the contest.
 
The Warhawks will host Southern Miss inside Fant-Ewing Coliseum on Saturday (Feb. 15) at 2 p.m.