| GAME DAY INFORMATION |
| When: Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015 | 7:30 p.m. (CST) |
| Where: Canyon, Texas | First United Bank Center |
| Series: Series tied 23-23 since 1988 | Streak: TSU, Won 5 |
| Last Meeting: TSU 76, WT 71 on January 21, 2015 in Stephenville |
| FOLLOW THE ACTION |
| Radio: Tarleton Sports Network on KTRL 90.5 FM | Listen Live |
| Pregame Coverage: Pregame Show begins 15 minutes before tip off |
| Web Stream: GoBuffsGo.com |
| Social Media: Facebook | Twitter |
| Live Stats | Game Notes |
THE GAME
Riding the momentum of a nine-game winning streak, No. 11 Tarleton State will be on the road again as they head to Canyon Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. contest with West Texas A&M.
THE BROADCAST
The game will have a live radio broadcast presented by the Tarleton Sports Network presented by North Texas Ford Dealers. The Voice of the Texans,
Casey Hogan, will be back calling the play-by-play for Tarleton basketball this season. The broadcast can be heard on KTRL 90.5 FM in Stephenville and surrounding areas or online at TarletonSports.com/ListenLive. The pregame show will begin 15 minutes prior to tip-off.
THE OPPONENT
After starting the season 0-3 including a 91-99 loss to Wayland Baptist, the Buffs delivered Tom Brown his first win as the head coach on Nov. 22 with an 82-66 win over Colorado State-Pueblo. Since the loss to Tarleton in Stephenville, WT has gone 5-2 with wins over Langston, Midwestern State and Cameron, while suffering losses to then #7 Angelo State and Texas-A&M-Commerce. The Buffs have won three straight since falling to Angelo State on Feb. 4.
THE SERIES
In the 47th all-time meeting between the Buffs and Texans, Tarleton State will look to take the series lead with a 24th win for the purple and white. Currently, the series is tied 23-23 but it has been a one-sided series since 2009. A 64-58 win over the Buffs in Canyon was the first of 12 Tarleton wins over the next 16 meetings heading into Wednesday. Tarleton has won five of 19 all-time meetings in Canyon, including an 87-63 win in the last visit to the First United Bank Center.
GUARD-PALOOZA
West Texas A&M enters Wednesday's game with an unusual roster filled entirely of guards. There is not a single player on the team with a forward or center position label and the tallest player is 6' 6''.
CHANGING OF THE GUARDS
When they last met, West Texas A&M was the LSC leader 3-pointers made this season with 168 in 17 games. Tarleton State has now assumed the role of the team with the best three ball draining 172-of-425 attempts for a .405 percentage on the season from behind the arch.
SOUTH CENTRAL POWER
With the first regional rankings coming out in a few weeks it's shaping up to be one of the toughest regions in the nation with five teams nationally ranked. Tarleton, with only two regional losses is still mathematically alive for the opportunity to host the South Central regional tournament for the fourth time and the first time since 2008.
STREAKING TEXANS
Over the course of Tarleton's nine-game winning streak, the Texans are being led by a pair of 17-point per game performers -
Mo Lee (17.6) and
TaShawn Mabry (17.1). In addition to the high-scoring tandem, Tarleton as a team is outscoring opponents by 12.4 points per game over the last nine.
AMONG THE BEST OF THE DECADE
Tarleton State's
Davene Carter and
Michael Hardge are putting up numbers that have them among the best Texans to play for the Purple and White since the 2005-06 season:
• Carter is one of 10 players to top the 600-point marker over the past decade. With three (3) more points, he'll pass Devon Hills (628) for ninth most in the last 10 years.
• Hardge has the sixth most assists over the last decade with 162 and is three (3) dimes shy of passing
Coleman Furst (165) for fifth most over that span.
• With 442 career rebounds, Carter has the third most boards for Tarleton in the past decade. Only John Davis (599) and Eric Williams (519) have more.
TOPS IN THE NATION
Tarleton State ranks among the nations best in multiple statistical categories, including:
• No. 6 in Won-Lost Percentage (91.3)
• No. 8 in Scoring Defense (61.6 ppg)
• No. 9 in 3-pt Defense (.302)
• No. 12 in Scoring Margin (14.9)
• No. 20 in FG Defense (.402)
• No. 21 in Total Blocks (108)
• No. 21 in Free Throws Made (434)
• No. 22 in 3-Pt Field-Goal Percentage (.400)
REISMAN MOVES UP ALL-TIME WINS LIST
After starting the season No. 26 on the all-time wins list for Division II Head Coaches,
Lonn Reisman is now tied at No. 21 on the all-time victory list with Mike Sandifar of Oakland City College with 580 career wins.
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
Tarleton State will return to the friendly confines of Wisdom Gym Saturday for a 7 p.m. contest with the Greyhounds of Eastern New Mexico.
