WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Antwan Taylor recorded a career high in his third consecutive game while leading Midwestern State to a 92-70 win over Sterling (Kan.) Tuesday afternoon at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.
The redshirt-freshman from Nolanville, Texas, was also efficient.
Taylor connected on 7-of-11 shots with a 3-pointer and converted a traditional three-point play to finish with 16 points, while also grabbing a collegiate high seven rebounds. The defensive pest also made three steals -- all off of the bench.
"My challenge to the team at the beginning of the year was that we have to rely and trust that our bench can come in and blow a game open or give us something when we are flat," MSU coach
Justin Leslie said. "They have done that. Antwan changed the game with his energy today both in the first half and the second. When he goes out and defends like that, it's funny how the points just show up for him."
Junior forward
Austin Lewis continued his stellar shooting from beyond the arc by hitting five more triples on the way to finish the game with 15 points. That came on the heels of his clutch 21-point effort with six 3-pointers in Saturday's win over St. Mary's.
"Austin can fill it up," Leslie said. "If they don't account for him, he's going to be able get shots up."
The duo combined for nearly half of the Mustangs' 61 bench points, but all seven reserves contributed to the score line.
Freshman
Braedon Bigott scored nine points, while
Amaechi Chukwu returned from injury to score six points and snare seven rebounds in 13 minutes.
Freshman
Steve Tatsiguia, a fan favorite, scored his first six collegiate points in seven minutes of action, while
Logan Epes and
John Gaines pitched in five and four points, respectively.
Junior
Will Shepherd matched a season high with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting with two 3-pointers to lead the starting five in scoring.
Pierre Sanders and
Bakari LaStrap dished out a team-high six assists each as the Mustangs recorded helpers on 26 of 38 field goals.
The Mustangs' five-game winning streak is the longest since MSU won five consecutive games at the end of the 2021-22 season, while the 5-0 start is the best since the 2020-21 squad also started with five-straight victories.
Midwestern State hits the road for the first time this season Saturday afternoon at Northwestern Oklahoma State. Tipoff at Percefull Fieldhouse is set for 3 p.m.
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-- MSUMustangs.com --
