THE GAMES 

Opponent: Seattle U Redhawks 

Dates: Friday, Jan. 22 and Saturday, Jan. 23. Both games tip off at 5 p.m. CST. 

Location: Redhawk Center – Seattle, Washington 

TELEVISION: ESPN+ 

ESPN.com/Watch 

RADIO: Tarleton Sports Network KXTR 100.7 FM 

Kyle Crews, Play-by-Play 

AT A GLANCE 

Tarleton gets its first taste of a Western Athletic Conference road trip when it treks to the pacific northwest to face Seattle U in the first-ever matchup between the two schools. 

The Texans (3-8) and Redhawks (4-7) will play back-to-back games inside the Redhawk Center. The WAC previously announced that teams will play consecutive games at the same site in an effort to reduce travel costs and exposure to COVID-19. 

The weekend slate kicks off an extended stretch of time away from Stephenville for Tarleton. Beginning with Friday's contest, eight of the Texans' next 10 scheduled games are set to be played away from Wisdom Gym. 

Tarleton is looking to snap a five-game losing streak – the longest of the Misty Wilson era – when it meets Seattle U. The Texans are also searching for their first road or neutral site victory and first win over a Division I opponent during the 2020-21 season. 

Both teams enter with an 0-2 mark in WAC play. The Texans fell on Friday and Saturday to California Baptist (14-0) by respective scores of 70-60 and 89-66. The Redhawks dropped a pair of road games to Utah Valley (4-3, 2-2 WAC) over the weekend. 

Seattle U perhaps presents an opportunity for Tarleton to rectify recent offensive struggles in half court sets. The Redhawks are allowing the second-most points per game (75.7) of any team in the conference. Tarleton is committing the fewest turnovers per game (14.5) but has shot above 35 percent from the field and scored more than 70 points once in its last eight games. The Texans won two of their first three games to begin their inaugural Division I season, shot above 50 percent in all three ballgames and averaged 75.6 points per game. 

Free throw shooting consistently has been a strength for a Texan squad featuring seven new faces and just two seniors. Prior to Saturday's loss to the Lancers, in which Tarleton hit 13-22 (59 percent) attempts from the line, Tarleton led the WAC in free throw percentage and currently ranks third (72.3 percent). The Texans have shot better than 75 percent at the charity stripe in six games and hit at least 20 free throws on three separate occasions. 

SEATTLE U FAN AND TICKETING POLICY 

Stadium access is permitted only to student athletes and essential workers in accordance with Washington state and King County health regulations. No spectators will be allowed at either game.  

GAME COVERAGE 

Links for live stats and video streams for each game can be accessed on the women's basketball schedule page at TarletonSports.com. International viewers can watch both games for free on the WAC Digital Network, as ESPN+ is only available in the United States. Kyle Crews will have the call for both games on the new home of Tarleton women's basketball – KXTR 100.7 FM in Stephenville – and worldwide at TarletonSports.com/ListenLive. The pregame show begins 30 minutes before tipoff. 

INSIDE THE SERIES: SEATTLE U 

The schools have not previously met. The Redhawks joined the WAC during the 2012-13 athletic calendar year. Seattle U previously competed as a member Division II school from 2002-2009. 

LAST TIME OUT: CALIFORNIA BAPTIST 

Tarleton held California Baptist to 40 percent shooting – its second-lowest clip of the season – and under its season averages in points and assists per game in a competitive loss on Friday. The game featured 15 lead changes, nine of which came in the first half. 

The Texans led 18-15 after the first quarter and trailed by just three points at halftime. Tarleton led 39-35 early in the third quarter but the Lancers closed the frame on a 17-3 scoring run to separate from the Texans. 

Tarleton took advantage of 25 Lancer fouls to keep the game close. The Texans hit 22-28 attempts from the foul line but posted their second-lowest shooting percentage (27.6) of the season. 

Saturday's game saw Tarleton take an 11-0 lead in the game's first 2:22 but struggle with depth and an improved performance from California Baptist. The Lancers shot a season-high 52.4 percent from the field and outscored the Texans by 34 points the rest of the way. Tarleton dressed just 11 players in both games and only eight played more than two minutes combined. 

UP NEXT: UTAH VALLEY 

Tarleton returns home to face the Wolverines on Jan. 29-30. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT for each contest. 

It will be the first-ever meeting between Tarleton and UVU, which is 2-2 in WAC play. UVU fell on the road to the conference-leading Lancers on Jan. 8-9 but responded with victories over Seattle U in Orem last weekend.  

TEXANS AMONG WAC STATISTICAL LEADERS 

Iyana Dorsey leads the Texans in scoring (13.2 ppg) and leads the WAC in free throw percentage (87.5). She is fourth in total points scored (145), tied for seventh in steals per game (1.9) and eighth in points per game. 

Sophomore Callie Boyles continues to lead the conference in blocks. She's averaging 1.9 rejections per game, has swatted 21 shots this season and has 45 blocks for her career. Tarleton also ranks fourth in blocks per game (3.8) as a team. 

Fellow forward Emily Cunningham has proven to be one of the WAC's top shooters. The 6-0 junior ranks second in 3-point field goal percentage (46.9) and third in field goal percentage (51.6). She knocked down at least 50 percent of her shots for the sixth time this season in her 13-point (4-7) effort vs. California Baptist on Saturday. 

Marissa Escamilla is now tied for fourth in rebounding (6.6 rpg) and 14th in scoring (11.5 ppg) following a weekend in which she averaged 14.5 points and 9.5 rebounds against the Lancers. 

TARLETON ON THE ROAD 

The Texans' 0-4 start in road games and 0-6 mark in games played away from Wisdom Gym is uncharacteristic for the program.  

Tarleton holds a combined 49-43 record in road and neutral site games since Wilson's first season as head coach in 2014-2015. The Texans were 10-2 in away games last year in their final season as a member of the Lone Star Conference and at the Division II level. The team won nine straight contests away from home to close the campaign.  

This year's squad will play more than 60 percent of its games outside of Stephenville and currently has just nine confirmed home games. Tarleton originally was set to host 12 games at Wisdom Gym. The team's Dec. 14 matchup vs. Arlington Baptist was replaced with its game at Florida and home games against Dixie State on Feb. 19-20 are off the table with the Trailblazers electing to cancel the remainder of their women's basketball season on Jan. 5. 

NCAA NET RANKINGS 

Through Jan. 19, Tarleton has faced off with four teams ranked inside the top-130 of the NCAA Women's Basketball NET Rankings; Florida (No. 58), California Baptist (No. 79), Eastern Michigan (No. 108) and North Texas (No. 126).  

Four teams in the WAC sit inside the top-200 of the rankings, including the Lancers. Grand Canyon is ranked 139th while New Mexico State and Utah Valley are slotted at No. 186 and No. 200, respectively.  

Seattle U is 266th out of a possible 340 teams while Tarleton is ranked No. 301 ahead of Friday's matchup.  

The NCAA released its first set of rankings on Jan. 4. NET Rankings are used by the NCAA Tournament selection committee to help set the 64-team field. The NET utilizes two factors in ranking teams: Team Value Index (factors in results, quality of opponent and location) and the team's net efficiency (efficiency metrics scaled for quality of opponent and location). The rankings do not include games played against non-Division I opponents. 

TEXANS CHASING PROGRAM RECORDS 

If the season were to end today, Dorsey would have the fourth-highest single-season free throw percentage in program history. The freshman guard also leads the team in free throws made (42) and is shooting at an 87.5 percent clip from the charity stripe, which is tops in the WAC. She hit 10-12 free throws against North Texas and 9-10 vs. California Baptist on Jan. 15. 

Cunningham's 46.9 percent clip from 3-point range would be the third-best mark in a single season in program history. The 6-0 junior has connected on 15-32 attempts from long range through 11 games and made at least three shots from beyond the arc in four of the nine games she has appeared in. Cunningham has shot at or above a 50 percent clip on five occasions. 

Lucy Benson is second on the team in steals with 19 and has 116 for her career. She needs 57 more to enter the top-15 of the program's records list for career steals. 

GRAND CANYON MAKE UP DATES ANNOUNCED 

Tarleton's games at Grand Canyon will now be played on Feb. 9 and 10 in Phoenix, the WAC announced on Jan. 15.  

Tarleton was set to make its WAC debut against the Lopes on Jan. 8-9 before two positive COVID-19 tests within the Texan program forced the postponement of the series. WAC officials previously indicated games can be made up if teams share a common off week or if the host facility is available on alternate dates.  

GCU's bye week is scheduled for Feb. 8-14 while the Texans will be off the week prior. Tarleton also has the week of Feb. 15-21 open following Dixie State's decision to cancel its women's basketball season on Jan. 5. The Texans had home games vs. the Trailblazers scheduled for Feb. 19-20.  

Additionally, the Texans' road contests against Chicago State have been moved to Feb. 13-14. Tarleton was previously set to face the Cougars on Feb. 12-13. Both games will tip off at 1 p.m. CT.  

Visit TarletonSports.com for full schedule details. 

CUTTING DOWN ON THE GIVEAWAYS 

The team has slowly shrugged off the turnover bug over its last seven games. Through its first four contests, Tarleton turned the ball over 17.5 times per game, including a season-high 21 giveaways against North Texas to begin the season.  

Since then, the Texans have reduced their turnovers-per-game average to 12.7 and committed 85 total turnovers. The squad, which features seven new faces, recorded 70 turnovers in its first four games. Texans' eight turnovers against Oral Roberts were a single-game low for the 2020-21 season.