Box Score STEPHENVILLE – The No. 17-ranked Tarleton Texans dropped its first season-opener since the 2001-02 season, falling 73-60 to the Southwestern Assemblies of God Lions at Wisdom Gym on Monday night.
 
“You have to give all of the credit in the world to Southwestern [Assemblies of God] tonight,” said Tarleton head basketball coach Lonn Reisman. “We came out and got a big lead on them, but you have to give them credit for staying in the game and competing like they did tonight.”
 
The Texans (0-1) shot 50% from the field in the first half, but went just 6-for-28 (21.4%) in the final 20 minutes en route to the 13-point loss. Tarleton drops its first season-opener since falling 83-73 to Wingate back on Nov. 16, 2001.
 
The Texans took a 10-point lead into the locker room up 35-25 at the break. Tarleton led by as many as 16 points in the first half when Chuck Guy (G, Jr, Fort Worth) drained a three-pointer at the 6:48 mark to put the Texans on top 25-9. Guy led the Texans at the break with 11 points, going 4-for-7 from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the three-point line.
 
The Texans maintained its double-digit lead in the first half until a late 7-0 run from the Lions pulled SAGU back within eight points of the Texans, down 33-25 with less than a minute to play before the intermission. Brian Word (G, Sr, Baltimore, Md.) managed to knock down a pair of free throws with 25 seconds left and SAGU's heave at the buzzer clanked off the rim giving Tarleton the 10-point advantage.
 
Coleman Furst (G, Jr, Denison) came right out of the gates for the Texans, knocking down his first jumper of the 2012-13 campaign. The two-year letterwinner scored Tarleton's first seven points to give Tarleton a 7-0 lead early in the contest. Furst finished the half with those seven points going 2-for-3 from the field and 2-for-2 from the charity stripe.
 
The Texans were beat-out on the boards in the first half, 20-13. Word led the team with three boards at the break.
 
Tarleton shot 60% from beyond the arc and were 12-for-24 (50%) from the field. The Texans, who ranked ninth in the nation last season in opponent field goal percentage, held SAGU to just 30.8% from the field in the first 20 minutes of play.
 
The Lions forced a turnover right out of the break followed it with a 3-0 run. SAGU then managed to get back within three points of the Texans with 16:47 left to play capping off a 9-3 run with a pair of free throws form Caleb Gentry.
 
Damion Clemons (F, So, Dallas) grabbed a rebound at the 14:27 mark and then slammed it down to make it a 45-39 game, but the Lions countered with a 7-0 run and took its first lead of the game at the 13:00 mark on Mike Nwelue's jumper from the right wing. On SAGU's next possession, Jonathan Walter buried a three-pointer to make it a 49-45 game with less than 12 minutes to play.
 
The Lions pushed the lead to 52-46 until De'Andre Upchurch (G, Jr, Flint, Mich.) drained his third trey of the game to pull the Texans back to within three points, down 52-49 at the 10:20 mark. SAGU would proceed to go on a 14-0 run and then hold the Texans without a field goal for just under eight minutes.
 
The Lions led by as many as 17 points and never let the Texans back within   single digits, outscoring the Texans 48-25 in the second half.
 
Furst led the Texans with 15 points in the season opener and Upchurch was right behind him with 14 points. Guy finished the evening with 12 points and a team-high four assists. Word led the team with seven rebounds.
 
After shooting 60% from the three-point line in the first half, Tarleton finished the game going 8-for-17 (47.1% ). The Texans finished the night shooting just 34.6% (18-52) from the field and were 16-for-24 (66.7%) from the charity stripe.
 
Tarleton returns to action this Friday, hosting three teams in the 2012 Taco Bell Texan Tip-Off Classic. A&M-Commerce, Texas-Permain Basin and East Central will join the Texans in the tournament. Tarleton will play the Falcons on Friday at 7 p.m. before concluding the tournament against the Lions on Saturday.