March 22, 2010

Box Score

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Louisiana Tech's season ended Monday with a 69-40 loss at Missouri State in the second round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament at JQH Arena.

It was the lowest point total of the season for Tech who ends the season with a record of 24-11. Missouri State improved to 22-12 and advanced to the semifinals of the CIT.

"That was a good disciplined team," Tech head coach Kerry Rupp said. "You have to be disciplined, stay with them and stay with the game plan. We were there in the first 20 minutes, but not all 40 and that's what it takes."

The Bulldogs were doomed by poor shooting as they shot 31.4 percent from the field, the second lowest mark of the season. Tech's 40 points and 16 field goals were both season lows.

Senior David Jackson led a balanced scoring effort with 10 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Senior Magnum Rolle didn't start and played 13 minutes while nursing an injury, but scored nine points on 3-of-4 shooting.

Both teams were cold from the field in the first half as Tech started 1-for-10 while MSU started 2-for-15. However, the scoring picked up and after an Olu Ashaolu dunk, Tech cut a seven point deficit to just one at 19-18 with 4:20 remaining. A Brown three-pointer tied the score at 23-23 with 2:40 left in the half before the Bears scored the remaining five points to go into halftime with a 28-23 lead.

Tech trailed at half despite outshooting MSU 40 percent to 30.3 percent. The Bulldogs were plagued by 11 turnovers which the Bears converted to 17 points. MSU had just three turnovers. The 23 points was a season low halftime total by the Bulldogs.

The second half started similar to the first for Tech as they started 3-of-10 from the field and trailed 50-33 after the first nine minutes of play. The deficit only grew larger for the Bulldogs who were 6-of-26 from the field and outscored 41-17 in the second half.

Tech had 17 turnovers that led to 28 MSU points. The Bears were 17-of-18 from the free throw line while the Bulldogs were 4-of-7.

Missouri State was led by Adam Leonard with 20 points including six three-pointers. The Bears shot 37.9 percent from the field (22-58).

"I'm proud of what our seniors have done," Rupp said of Jackson, Rolle, Jamel Guyton and Kyle Gibson. We didn't want the season to end like this. We want to get some of these young guys to be tougher and more committed and do all the little things that good teams do. I thought Missouri State did those little things tonight."

The Bulldogs end their season with the most wins since 1985 and their first postseason appearance since 2006.