Box Score STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Five different Tarleton State players, including three starters, scored in double figures to help lead the No. 17-ranked Texans to a 75-54 win over East Central Saturday night at Wisdom Gym in Stephenville.
 
Davene Carter led the way with a game-high 13 points and five rebounds, while Chuck Guy had a career night with 10 points and setting new career-highs with nine assists and six steals.
 
#De'Andre Upchurch added 10 points for the Texans, while both Mohammed Lee (10 points) and Tashawn Mabry (12 points) posted double-digit scoring efforts as well.
 
The Texans moved to 6-0 overall and begin a season with six straight wins for the first time since the 2006-07 campaign. The loss dropped the Tigers to 2-4 overall and pushes its losing streak to the Texans to nine straight games.
 
The Texans shot just 36.7 percent from the field in the first half, but still managed to take a 10-point lead into the break, up 29-19 at halftime.
 
Tarleton opened the game with a 6-0 run before the Tigers got onto the board with 14:54 left in the first period. A lay-up from  Mabry would later put the Texans up 11-4, but ECU countered with a 6-0 run to pull within a point of the home team, down 11-10.
 
Colby Carr's lay-up with 9:38 left to play in the half would turn out to be the only shot from the field that the Tigers would have over the next 6:20 and Tarleton would go on run of 9-0 to take a 20-10 lead with 7:41 left to play in the half.
 
ECU did the most of its damage from the free throw line the remainder of the half, going 5-for-5 down the stretch from the charity stripe. Tarleton limited the opposing team to just 26.9 percent shooting in the first half on the way to the 29-19 halftime advantage.
 
The Tigers opened the second half with an 8-2 run to pull with in four of the Texans, but Tarleton went on a 9-2 run to push its lead to 40-29 with a three-pointer from Mabry with 14:48 left to play in the game.
 
An 11-6 run followed, giving Tarleton a 16-point lead with 10:24 left to play, up 51-35, but ECU would score the game's next six points to make it a nine-point game (51-42) with 8:39 left to go. The Texans quickly stopped the run with a dunk from Carter and then proceeded to go on a 16-5 run to put the game out of reach.
 
ECU trailed by as many as 22 points with 1:40 left before getting the game back to within 19 points. Mercedes Lane managed to hit a jumper off the bench for the Texans with 22 seconds left and ECU did not score on its final attempt to the basket.
 
The Texans shot 20 percentage points better in the second half (56.0) and finished the contest shooting 45.5 percent from the floor, which included a 6-for-16 effort from downtown. ECU was held to just 36.7 percent from the field and just made 3-of-15 from beyond the arc.
 
Both teams pulled down 37 rebounds each on the night, but it was Tarleton's 11 steals and 25 forced turnovers that made the difference in the game. The Texans scored 27 points of ECU's miscues, while the Tigers scored just nine points off Tarleton's 13 turnovers.
 
The Texans return to action this Wednesday, Dec. 4, in non-conference action against Oklahoma Panhandle State. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Wisdom Gym.