Texas State beats Georgia Southern in Sun Belt opener 80-66

SAN MARCOS, Texas (AP) Ethan Montalvo scored 19 points and Texas State defeated Georgia Southern 80-66 in a Sun Belt Conference opener Wednesday night.

Montalvo made four 3-pointers in coming up a point shy of his career high. Emani Gant added 16 points and Kavin Gilder-Tilbury 15 for the Bobcats (7-3), who shot 53 percent, including 6 of 13 from 3-point range. Anthony Roberson had 12 rebounds.

The teams were at the free-throw line a lot, with Texas State making 24 of 32 and Georgia Southern (4-7) 28 of 34. However, the Eagles shot only 35 percent from the field and just 4 of 18 from the arc.

Texas State took off to a 20-5 lead on its way to a 40-29 halftime advantage. The lead stayed in double figures with the Bobcats opening the second half by outscoring the Eagles 21-10, including nine points by Montalvo, for the game's largest margin, 22 points.