Louisiana Tech falls in semifinals

FRISCO, Texas – In round three of Louisiana Tech and North Texas, it was yet another tough, defensive battle that came down to the final minute.

The Bulldogs wound up being on the losing end on Friday, falling 54-48 to the Mean Green in the Conference USA Tournament semifinals at the Ford Center at the Star.

Scoring was hard to come by for both squads. Neither Louisiana Tech (21-7) nor North Texas (16-9) shot over 40 percent from the field. Both went 3-of-17 from beyond the arc.

It was just a matter of the Mean Green taking a lead early in the second half, and the Bulldogs not being able to get over the hump despite getting to within one possession on multiple occasions.

Despite his hand injury, Cobe Williams dressed out and ended up playing three minutes, essentially with just one hand available. The point guard, who had started every game during the regular season and never missed a practice, was missed.

The Bulldogs were able to overcome their 17 turnovers in the quarterfinals without him, but they could not overcome the 15 turnovers versus the Mean Green that led to 21 points for the opposition.

North Texas used a 10-0 run early in the second half to take a 34-26 advantage, forcing a timeout by

Louisiana Tech head coach Eric Konkol. The Bulldogs chipped away little by little, getting to within three at 39-36 after mini 4-0 run off a Kalob Ledoux jumper and two free throws by JaColby Pemberton.

Minutes later, the Bulldogs got to within a possession two different times, one after a three-point play by Pemberton to make it 41-39 and again at 43-41 after a made jumper by Isaiah Crawford. The Mean Green got a dagger three by Mardrez McBride to push the North Texas advantage out to 46-41 with 4:08 to go. The Mean Green made eight free throws the rest of the way while the Bulldogs could not get to the freethrow line and shot 2-for-11 from the field down the stretch.