STEPHENVILLE - The Tarleton men's basketball team will have their first road game of the season when they head to Kingsville to take on the Javelinas at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 7 at Hampton Inn Court.

LAST WEEK
    The Texans (6-1) opened up Lone Star Conference action with a 25-point thumping of Cameron last Wednesday, 66-41.  Tarleton shot 51 percent from the floor and held the Aggies to 7.1 percent from behind the arc.

THIS YEAR
    On the season, Tarleton is shooting 47.9 percent from the floor, 29.5 percent from three-point land and 66.5 percent from the charity stripe.  The Texans are averaging 69.7 points per game and 36.1 rebounds per game.

HOLDING OFF OPPONENTS
    Opponent's are shooting just 36 percent overall and averaging 53.0 points per game against the Texans.  Tarleton is also rebounding its opponents and commits fewer turnovers.

STATISTICAL LEADERS
    Chris Harrell leads the team with 11.9 points per game, while Zach Nelson adds 11.7 and Fabian Wilson adds 10.7 points each game.  Nelson and Wilson are also combining for 13.1 rebounds per game together.  Shedrick Haynes and Chris Harrell are anchoring the defense with 12 and 14 steals respectively on the year.  Wilson leads the team in blocks with 11 total.

IN THE LSC
    The Texans are No. 1 in the conference in scoring defense (53.0 ppg) and No. 2 in scoring margin (+16.7 ppg).  Tarleton is also No. 1 in opponents' field goal percentage (36.0%).
    Individually, Chris Harrell is No. 14 in scoring (11.9 ppg) with Zach Nelson close behind in 16th (11.7 ppg).  Fabian Wilson is No. 4 in rebounding (7.1 rpg) and No. 2 in blocks (1.6 bpg), while Zach Nelson is tied for No. 1 in field goal percentage (74.3%).  Shedrick Haynes is No. 4 in assists with 3.7 per game.

SIZING UP THE OPPONENT
    The Javelinas are 6-4 on the year and 1-1 in LSC play.  A&M-Kingsville is coming off a tough loss to West Texas A&M, but does have a win over Eastern New Mexico under its belt.
 
STOPPING THE JAVELINAS
    As a team, TAMUK is averaging 75.8 points per game and giving up 71.0 points to opposing teams.  The Javelinas are shooting 44.6 percent from the field, 32.9 percent from three-point range and 78.1 percent from the free throw line.

WHO TO LOOK FOR
    TAMUK has a pair of dangerous athletes in junior guard Ashton Brown (16.1 ppg, 3.4 apg) and senior forward Robert Williams (16.6 ppg, 6.8 rpg).  Derry Nash is chipping in 9.5 points each contest, while Marcus Ford adds 8.2 points and 4.9 boards per game.

NO. 1 DEFENSE
    Tarleton finished the 2010-11 season as the No. 1 defense in the nation.  That was not only at the Division II level, but also in Division I, III and Junior College ranks.  This year's team has big shoes to fill, but has held opponents in check thus far as opposing offenses have averaged just 53.0 points per game.

REMAINING IN THE RANKINGS
    Tarleton was ranked No. 8 in the NABC/NCAA Division II Preseason Polls and No. 1 in the Lone Star Conference Preseason poll.
    The Texans are now No. 16 in the nation and No. 3 in the LSC standings.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE
    The Texans are 6-1 on the year.  LSC play continues for Tarleton as they take on A&M-Kingsville on the road and return to host Incarnate Word Saturday in Wisdom Gym.

REISMAN'S QUEST FOR 500
    Head coach Lonn Reisman is just 11 wins shy of getting his 500th victory at Tarleton.  He entered the season with a career record of 483-210.

DID YOU KNOW?
    The Texans lead the LSC in attendance by averaging 2,087 fans per game.  Tarleton led the league last season in attendance and looks to do so again in 2011-12.

Live stats are provided by Texas A&M-Kingsville, while fans can follow along with the action by listening to the live radio feed courtesy KSTV 93.1 FM.

For post-game results and more information regarding the 2011-12 Texan basketball season, check out TarletonSports.com.