THE GAMES 

Opponent: New Mexico State Aggies 

Dates: Friday, Feb. 26 and Saturday, Feb. 27. Both games tip off at 2 p.m. CT 

Location: Eastwood High School – El Paso, Texas 

TELEVISION: WAC Digital Network  

WACDigitalNetwork.com 

RADIO: Tarleton Sports Network KXTR 100.7 FM 

Kyle Crews, Play-by-Play 

AT A GLANCE 

The old guard meets the new kid on the block when the Aggies – the WAC's longest tenured member – face Tarleton in West Texas in the Texans' final road trip of the season. 

The series bills itself as a battle for fifth place in the conference standings, as Tarleton (7-12, 2-6 WAC) currently is one game back of the Aggies (5-10, 3-5). The Texans have won four of their last six ballgames and are riding their first three-game winning streak of the season following Sunday's 71-46 home victory over UNT Dallas. 

A road win over New Mexico State would arguably be the most noteworthy result of the Texans' season. The Aggies own victories over Grand Canyon, Seattle U and Utah Valley, who sit in a three-way tie for second with 6-4 conference records. New Mexico State has been the conference's most successful women's basketball program of late, having won four of the last five WAC Tournament Championships and five regular season titles since 2015. 

Stingy defense has engineered Tarleton's recent run of success and manifests itself as a key to victory ahead of the back-to-back affair. The Texans have held their last seven opponents to an average of 57.1 points per game. Division I opponents previously were averaging 76.9 points per game vs. Tarleton. New Mexico State enters the weekend slate scoring the second-fewest points per game (63.3) in the WAC and owns the worst free throw shooting percentage (58.3) of any team. The Aggies, though, are second in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (31.9) and offensive rebounds per game (12.9). 

The turnover battle may also help dictate the outcome of both games. New Mexico State turns teams over an average of 18.5 times per game – second-best in the WAC – while Tarleton has forced 65 turnovers combined in its last three wins. Opponents are turning the ball over 17.3 times per game vs. the Texans and Tarleton has forced 15-or-more giveaways in eight of its 10 games. 

Both contests will count as home games for New Mexico State despite being played in Tarleton's home state. New Mexico State Athletics announced on Feb. 1 its basketball teams will play the remainder of their games at El Paso's Eastwood High School. Amendments to the State of New Mexico's COVID-19 Policies for Intercollegiate Athletics do not allow teams to host any games inside the state.  

The Aggies previously relocated to Phoenix and hosted games on the campus of fellow Western Athletic Conference member Grand Canyon. College athletic teams were permitted to hold practices in the state of New Mexico o Jan. 20. 

The games continue Tarleton's extended run of road affairs. Following Saturday's tilt, nine of Tarleton's last 10 games will have been played outside of Stephenville. Tarleton is slated to play 15 of its 25 scheduled games away from home. 

GAME COVERAGE 

Links for live stats and the video stream can be accessed on the women's basketball schedule page at TarletonSports.com. 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. 

Fan attendance is not permitted at New Mexico State men's or women's basketball games as announced on Feb. 3. Current in-state COVID-Safe Practices require a 14-day quarantine for any individuals who leave the state of New Mexico. 

INSIDE THE SERIES: NEW MEXICO STATE 

Tarleton and New Mexico State are meeting on the women's basketball court for the first time. The Aggies have been WAC members since 2005. 

LAST TIME OUT: UNT DALLAS 

Tarleton grabbed a season-high 51 rebounds in its 25-point win over the Trailblazers, who transitioned to the NAIA level in 2020. The Texans also posted their best assist-to-turnover ratio (2.7) of the year after dishing out 16 assists against six turnovers. 

The Texans used a 22-12 scoring advantage in the third quarter to build an 18-point lead entering the final frame. UNT Dallas was competitive in the first half, as the Trailblazers led for more than three minutes to begin the game and trailed 26-25 around the midway point of the second quarter. 

Jayci Morton finished with career-highs in points (16) and steals (4) while snaring a season-best seven rebounds in 28 minutes off the bench. Marissa Escamilla tallied 18 points to lead all scorers while fellow forward Lucy Benson's 11-rebound effort matched her career high. Emily Cunningham was the third player to score in double figures with 11 points. 

UP NEXT FOR TARLETON 

Tarleton concludes its Division I debut season with four home games in a five-day window. The Texans first face Utah Valley on March 2-3. Both games will tip off at 6 p.m. The series is being made up from Jan. 29-30. Positive COVID-19 developments within the Wolverine program forced the postponement of the games.  

The Texans then hosts UTRGV on March 5-6 with tipoff time set for 7 p.m. for each contest. Tarleton defeated the Vaqueros 79-63 on Jan. 27 in Edinburg in a nonconference game. The games against UTRGV will be Tarleton's last of the 2020-21 campaign, as the program is not eligible to compete for WAC or NCAA Tournament championships in its first of four NCAA-mandated transition years. 

NET RANKINGS 

Through Feb. 23, Tarleton has faced off with four teams ranked inside the top-125 of the NCAA Women's Basketball NET Rankings: Florida (No. 60), California Baptist (No. 85), Eastern Michigan (No. 103) and North Texas (No. 122).  

New Mexico State is ranked No. 236 ahead of Friday's matchup and is the WAC's fourth-highest rated team. Grand Canyon (No. 177) and Utah Valley (No. 214) are second and third behind the Lancers. Tarleton (No. 287) is sixth among its conference peers. 

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 AMONG WAC STATISTICAL LEADERS 

Tarleton continues to be the WAC's top foul shooting team. The Texans' 300 makes at the line are the most of any team - Seattle U is second with 240 - and the squad ranks second in free throw percentage (71.4). As a team, Tarleton also ranks second in turnovers per game (14.9) and third in turnovers forced (17.3). 

Freshman Iyana Dorsey leads the WAC in 3-point field goals per game (2.1) and her 40 made triples are tips in the conference. She is also third in free throw percentage (81.9), fifth in points scored (270) and steals per game (2.1) and 10th in points per game (13.5). 

Escamilla ranks inside the top-10 in rebounding (6.8 rpg, T-5th), scoring (14.0 ppg, 6th), points scored (206, 9th) and free throw percentage (69.1). Benson's is ninth on the boards with a 6.1 rebound per game average while Cunningham's 36.2 percent clip from long range ranks 10th. 

DORSEY MAKING FRESHMAN OFFENSIVE HISTORY 

The Saginaw, Texas native has scored 15-plus points 10 times and been in double-digit scoring by halftime on five occasions. 

The freshman offensive phenom scored a career-high 19 points in Tarleton's 86-54 loss at Seattle U and was an offensive bright spot in an otherwise tough afternoon collectively from the field Her 18 points scored at North Texas were the most by a Texan in a season-opener since 2014 and the most by a freshman under coach Misty Wilson in a season-opening game. Dorsey's scoring figure was also a game high.  

Dorsey averaged 15 points per game against an undefeated California Baptist squad in Tarleton's WAC debut on Jan. 15- 16. She also leads the team in free throws made (56) and is shooting at an 84.0 percent clip from the charity stripe, which is tops in the WAC. She hit 10-12 free throws against North Texas, 9-10 vs. California Baptist on Jan. 15 and was 7-7 at Grand Canyon on Feb. 2.  

Dorsey, who holds Birdville High School records in made 3-point shots in a single season (77) and a single game (6) leads the team in made 3-point field goals with 29. Four of her 3-pointers came in a single quarter. Dorsey went 4-7 from beyond the arc in the second quarter of the team's win over Bacone. Dorsey was one of three players to hit four 3-point against Champion Christian to help the team reset the program record for most made 3-point field goals in a game. 

ESCAMILLA ATOP THE TEXAN STATISTICAL LEADERBOARD 

The junior was named the athletic department's Female Student Athlete of the Month on Jan. 29. She has tallied double-digit scoring figures in seven of Tarleton's eight games played against WAC opponents and eight of the team's last nine total. 

Escamilla has scored in double figures 27 times for her career and has been the team's leading scorer on six occasions, including a career-best 24-point effort to help Tarleton beat Chicago State 61-41 on Feb. 14 and secure its first WAC weekend sweep of the season. 

Her 23 points vs. GCU on Feb. 1 were a game-high as were her 17 and 16-point efforts vs. Champion Christian and Seattle U on Dec. 12 and Jan. 23, respectively. Escamilla was also Tarleton's leading scorer at Florida on Dec. 14 with 13 points. 

The 5-9 forward, who has made two starts this season, has recorded at least five rebounds in 11-of-16 games played. She leads Tarleton's active players in career 10-rebound games (5) and double-doubles (5).  

The Burnet, Texas native has recorded five rebounds in all but two of the games she has appeared in and is building off of a strong sophomore campaign. Last season, Escamilla had the most offensive rebounds of any player (67) and was tops on the team in field goal percentage (.542). 

CUNNINGHAM'S CONSISTENCY 

Cunningham, 6-0, scored in double figures and shot above 50 percent in the first five games she played in and has scored at least 10 points on eight separate occasions. A native of Italy, Texas, Cunningham returned from a two-game injury absence with an 11-point effort against Florida on Dec. 14. Nine of her points came in the first half - all of which came on made 3-point shots.  

The 6-0 forward put forth her best offensive performance at UTRGV on Jan. 27. She scored a career and game-high 20 points against the Vaqueros on 7-10 shooting to help Tarleton snap a seven-game losing streak and earn its first true Division I win. Cunningham was also 3-5 from long range.  

Against Howard Payne on Nov. 28, she connected on 6-9 shots from the field and was 4-6 from 3-point land. Cunningham ranks third all-time in Hill College program history in 3-point shots made. Cunningham gave Tarleton 13 points on 4-7 shooting, including a 3-4 clip from long range, in the team's 89-66 loss vs. California Baptist on Jan. 16. 

BENSON'S CAREER YEAR 

Benson's 15 points scored against the North Texas to begin the season were the most in a single game by the senior since she recorded 15 points in an 83-75 win over Pittsburg State on Nov. 27, 2019. She tied her previous career-high in rebounds (9) on three occasions prior to grabbing 11 boards against Grand Canyon (Feb. 2) and UNT Dallas (Feb. 21). She's averaging career-highs in points (6.6) and rebounds per game (6.). 

MORTON A MAINSTAY IN TEXAN TRIUMPHS 

The Stephenville native is averaging 7.7 points and 3.4 rebounds per game in Tarleton's seven victories and scored eight-or-more points in four of Tarleton's seven wins. Morton gave Tarleton eight points and six rebounds off the bench in its win over the Vaqueros and later tied her previous career-high in points scored (11) vs. Chicago State on Feb. 13 to help the team earn its first true WAC victory. She turned in a 10-point, four-rebound effort against Howard Payne on Nov. 28 in Tarleton's first win as a Division I program. Two weeks later, Morton chipped in five points and rebounds apiece in the first half of an eventual 68-point win over Champion Christian.