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STEPHENVILLE - A pair of the nation's top 25 teams are set to square off in a battle of conference supremacy when No. 17 Tarleton State heads to Canyon for a mid-week contest against No. 7 West Texas A&M.
 
AT A GLANCE
Records: #17 Tarleton State TexAnns, 13-2 (4-1 LSC); #7 West Texas A&M, 13-1 (4-0 LSC)
Game Coverage: Live stats and video can be found at TarletonSports.com by visiting the women's basketball schedule.
Radio: A live broadcast of the game can be heard on KSTV 93.1 FM in Stephenville or online at KSTVfm.com, courtesy of play-by-play announcer Mike Young.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Tarleton struggled at the free throw line and was outscored 37-31 in the second half as Cameron handed the TexAnns their first home loss of the season 69-64 Saturday night. Tarleton missed on 13 shots from the charity stripe for just 55 percent (13-29) in the loss. Kiara Wright scored 18 points and 16 rebounds while Kathy Thomas and Shanae Lowrance added 10 points each.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Tarleton and West Texas A&M have met 36 times since Tarleton's inaugural NCAA season in 1994-95. The first meeting came on Jan. 22, 1995 and the teams have met in every season since. The TexAnns got their first win of the series with a 57-51 victory in Stephenville on Jan. 19, 2002 and they followed up on Feb. 14, 2002 by sweeping the 2002 season series with a 64-61 victory in Canyon. Since the 2010-11 season, the teams have split the series 3-3 with Tarleton winning three straight from Feb. 16, 2011 to Jan. 7, 2012.
 
REACHING THE 13-2 MARK TO OPEN A SEASON
This is the third time in the last five seasons in which Tarleton has opened the season by winning 13 of the first 15. The 13-2 record Tarleton is boasting is tied for the best 15-game start in the school's NCAA history - matching the start to the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons.
 
BOUNCING BACK FROM A HOME LOSS
Since 2009, Tarleton State has lost just five games prior to Saturday night's loss against Cameron. In those five losses, Tarleton is 4-1 in the games that follow and 1-1 when the next game is on the road. Tarleton has only lost back-to-back games six times since 2009 and only once with Kiara Wright and Shanae Lowrance on the floor together.
 
SCOUTING THE LADY BUFFS
After losing their head coach in the offseason, West Texas A&M has started out strong under the direction of new head coach Mark Kellogg. The Lady Buffs are 13-1 with the only loss coming on the road at No. 3 Emporia State 64-78. West Texas is led in scoring by Devin Griffin (14.2) and Chontiquah White (14.0).
 
LSC'S BEST OFFENSES COLLIDE
When Tarleton and West Texas A&M square off Wednesday night, it will pair the top two scoring offenses in the Lone Star Conference. Tarleton is the top scoring team in the conference at 80.0 points per game while WT is scoring 79.0 points per game. These teams are also leading the LSC in scoring margin and are second and third in scoring defense.
 
KEYING ON THE SECOND HALF
Looking back at the last six games of the series, in the three games Tarleton won, the TexAnns have outscored West Texas A&M 118-80. However, in WT's three victories, the TexAnns have surrendered the second half 112-91. This season, Tarleton is 12-1 when leading at halftime and has only been outscored in the second half twice.
 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
Tarleton returns home for a Saturday night matchup against Eastern New Mexico at 5 p.m.