The Teams: Tarleton Texans (6-3, 0-0 WAC) at Northwestern State Lady Demons (6-3, 0-0 SLC)
Where: Natchitoches, Louisiana
Arena: Prather Coliseum
Day and Time: Saturday, 1 p.m. CT
Streaming Platform: DemonTV (Northwestern State streaming)
Radio: Tarleton Sports Network (Kyle Crews)
 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP

• This is the first ever meeting between Tarleton and Northwestern State.
• The Lady Demons are members of the Southland Conference.
• Northwestern State is off to a hot start like the Texans, beginning 6-3. The Lady Demons have won three straight by a combined 15 points, including two four-point W's and a seven-point OT win.
• NSU's three losses have come to Kansas State, Wichita State and Grambling State.
• The Lady Demons went 1-19 last season, their lone win coming in the season finale vs. Central Arkansas.

 
QUICK HITS

• The Texans have begun their season 6-3, the third time in four seasons they've been 6-3 or better through nine games. With a win Saturday, they'll have a 7-3 mark or better for the 17th time in team history, and the third time under head coach Misty Wilson (2018-19, 2014-15).
• Tarleton has the fourth best record in the WAC, just one game back of the top spot.
• In Tarleton's last game, they forced a 16-of-55 (.291) clip from the field. That's the fourth time the Texans have held a team under 30 percent shooting this season, tied for the second most such games in a season in the last 10 years already, only behind the five instances last year.
• For the season, the Texans are allowing teams to shoot just 32.8 percent, a would-be tied-12th best mark in NCAA Division I, if not for the Texans' reclassification period.
• Jenna Dick is lethal from distance, shooting 50.0 percent from downtown (15-of-30). That's the third best mark in the WAC and would-be tied-16th highest percentage in NCAA Division I.
• In the last game, Seynabou Thiam recorded six points, 11 rebounds and a career-high five blocks. In the WAC, she has the most total blocks (23) and the best BPG average (2.6). Only 18 NCAA Division I players have more blocks than Thiam this year, and only 15 have more blocks per game.
• The Texans have been pounding the glass, owning a 388-313 (+8.3 RPG) advantage on the boards this season. They're 6-1 when outrebounding opponents this year, 0-2 when outrebounded.

 
WHO'S HOT

• Seynabou Thiam – Thiam had a season-high 11 rebounds and career-high five blocks, to go with six points in the last game. Over her last six games, Thiam has averaged 8.0 rebounds and 2.8 blocks. She's averaging the second most rebounds on the team at 6.4 RPG.
• Jenna Dick – Over her last three games, Dick has made 8-of-13 (.615) from three-point range, shooting 50.0 from long range this season. Over the last two games, she made her first starts while a member of the Texans.
• Malaya Kendrick – Kendrick just scored a season-high 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, adding five rebounds in 35 minutes. She's secured 5+ rebounds in eight of nine games this year, leading the team at 7.8 RPG, fifth best in the WAC. Only 26 guards across NCAA Division I are averaging more boards.

 
NUMBERS TO KNOW
60: The Texans have only allowed three teams to score 60 or more POINTS in a game this season in nine games. Over their last five seasons, the Texans are 56-4 when allowing fewer than 60 points.
 
5.3: Tarleton is averaging 5.3 BLOCKS PER GAME as a team, largely thanks to Seynabou Thiam's 2.6 BPG average. They lead the WAC in blocks per game, and would have the tied-25th best BPG mark, if not for reclassification.
 
8: The Texans have dominated first halves this year, outscoring opponents on average 36.8 to 30.3. Tarleton has LED AT HALFTIME in eight straight games, trailing at the break just a single time this year, in the season opener at Arkansas.
 
24: Focusing on the next play and not looking too far ahead is crucial in basketball, and the Texans have excelled at that, focused on winning each quarter. Tarleton has won 24 of 36 QUARTERS this season.
 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
It will be the last non-conference game of the season for the Texans in a Wednesday road game at Incarnate Word at 2 p.m. CT. The Cardinals are 3-4 this season, 3-0 at home and 0-4 on the road. They've won three of their last four games overall, with the lone loss coming against WAC member UTRGV, 62-57. Jaaucklyn Moore leads the team in scoring at 18.3 points per game, posting 30 points on 12-of-25 shooting in her last contest.