The Teams: Tarleton Texans (12-8, 4-5 WAC) vs. UTRGV Vaqueros (7-12, 3-4 WAC)
Where: Stephenville, Texas
Arena: Wisdom Gym
Day and Time: Saturday, 2 p.m. CT
Streaming Platform: ESPN+
Radio: Tarleton Sports Network (Kyle Crews)
 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP

• This is the fourth all-time meeting between these two, with the Texans leading the series 2-1. All three meetings occurred in 2021, two in Stephenville.
• Iyana Dorsey and Marissa Escamilla feasted against the Vaqueros last year. Dorsey had two 20+ point games, averaging 19.3 points and 2.3 steals. Escamilla had two double-doubles, averaging 18.3 and 9.7 rebounds. Emily Cunningham had 20 points (7-10 FG, 3-5 3PT) in the first game.
• The Vaqueros have lost two straight and three of four. They are No. 8 in the WAC standings.

 
QUICK HITS

• Tarleton has not lost consecutive games this year, posting a perfect 7-0 record following a loss. They've alternated wins and losses in the last 10 games, since Dec. 22.
• Iyana Dorsey exploded in the last game in her first game off the bench since Dec. 13. She played 33 minutes, posting 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting. It was her highest scoring game since Jan. 1.
• Lucy Benson needs three rebounds to reach 500 for her career. She'd be the first Texan in their Division I era to reach the 500-rebound milestone.
• In their last game, the Texans forced Lamar to shoot 23-of-61 (.377) . It marked the 15th time in 20 games the Texans forced their opponents to shoot worse than 40 percent. They are second in the WAC in opponent field goal percentage (.358), tied-31st across all of NCAA Division I.
• In their last game, the Texans lost a fairly close one to the Cardinals despite starting center Seynabou Thiam playing just five minutes, suffering an injury in the first quarter. Over her past five games entering that contest, she had racked up 22 blocks (4.4 BPG), 48 boards (9.6 RPG) and three double-doubles. She needs four more blocks to tie TSU's single-season blocks record.
• In the WAC this season, Tarleton is top-five in scoring defense (second, 56.5 PPG), FG% defense (second, .358), 3PT% defense (second, .271), blocks (second, 5.0 BPG), rebounding (third, 39.0 RPG) and steals (8.8 SPG). Nationally they're tied-23rd in blocks, tied-40th in scoring defense.

 
WHO'S HOT

• Iyana Dorsey – Dorsey just scored 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting, plus 5-of-6 from the free throw line. She boosted her team-leading scoring average to 11.1 PPG (21st in the WAC). Her season free throw percentage of .862 is best in the conference. She's also 13th in steals per game (1.8).
• Malaya Kendrick – Kendrick just recorded eight points, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Over her last five games, she's averaged 12.4 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 steals. She's second on the team in rebounding at 6.9 RPG, tied-50th most among all Division I guards.
• Marissa Escamilla – Escamilla came off the bench to give the Texans life in the third quarter in the last game. She finished with eight points (2-4 FG) and three rebounds in 22 minutes. It was her highest scoring game since Jan. 8 and the most she's played since Nov. 23.

 
NUMBERS TO KNOW
37: The Texans don't need to shoot a great percentage to get it done, essentially needing a 37.0 SHOOTING PERCENTAGE to win games. They're 10-1 this year when shooting 37 percent or better, and 2-7 when shooting under 37 percent.
 
2: Expect a lower scoring game Saturday, as UTRGV comes in scoring the second FEWEST POINTS PER GAME in the WAC, plus Tarleton allows the second FEWEST POINTS PER GAME in the conference. The Texans are averaging the third fewest points, while UTRGV allows the eighth fewest.
 
4: Tarleton is still one of the top rebounding teams in the conference, averaging the third most at 39.0 RPG. On average, they're securing 3.3 rebounds per game more than their opponent, the fourth BEST REBOUNDING MARGIN in the conference.
 
5: With a win Saturday, Tarleton will improve to 5-5 in conference play. Their fifth win will set a NEW TEAM RECORD for Western Athletic Conference wins in a season, besting their four such wins from a season ago.
 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
The Texans will have just one game in a 13-day stretch, coming on Saturday at Chicago State at 1 p.m. CT. The Cougars have the third worst record in the Western Athletic Conference at 2-5, 3-13 overall.