The Teams: Kansas Christian Falcons (3-0, 0-0 ACCA) vs. Tarleton Texans (0-1, 0-0 WAC)
Where: Stephenville, Texas
Arena: Wisdom Gym
Day and Time: Thursday, 7 p.m. CT
Streaming Platform: ESPN+
Radio: KTRL 90.5 FM
 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP
 

• This is the first meeting between Tarleton and Kansas Christian in the programs' histories.
• Kansas Christian has already played eight games, four regular season and four exhibitions. This is their third game in four nights, as they played an exhibition at Prairie View on Monday and a regular season contest at St. Thomas on Tuesday.
• In the Falcons' four regular season games, they've averaged 91.3 PPG, compared to 68.8 PPG allowed.

 
QUICK HITS
 

• Thursday marks Tarleton's home opener. Since 2007, the Texans are 12-3 in home openers. Overall, at home under head coach Billy Gillispie, the Texans are 16-8 (.667).
• Tarleton nearly pulled off one of the biggest wins in program history on Monday, leading by seven with just over three minutes to play at the Pac-12's Arizona State. The WAC showed out on Monday in addition to Tarleton's near upset, with Sam Houston beating Oklahoma and UT Arlington nearly toppling Oklahoma State.
• Monday marked Tarleton's fifth game against a Power Five program over the past two seasons. In those games, Tarleton, a reclassifying NCAA Division I program, either led or was within five points with seven minutes or less to play against four of the five Power Five opponents. The five opponents were #1 Gonzaga, #3 (and eventual NCAA champion) Kansas, #20 Michigan, Stanford and Arizona State.

• The Texans are a defensive minded team, and that has stayed true year-over-year. On Monday, they forced ASU into 21 turnovers and allowed a .339/.250/.483 split. That marked ASU's most turnovers in a game since 2019-20 (21 at Washington State on Jan. 29, 2020), and it was ASU's worst shooting performance from the field in their past 13 games, dating back to last season.
• Tarleton outscored ASU in the paint 32-28, despite ASU playing six players at 6-8 or taller.

 
WHO'S HOT
 

• Jakorie Smith: In his Texan debut, Jakorie Smith led the team in scoring (16 points, 7-10 FT) and rebounding (seven) at ASU on Monday. That's the third straight game for Tarleton that the leading scorer was also the leading rebounder.
• Shakur Daniel: Shakur Daniel totaled 10 points on 3-of-6 shooting, three rebounds, two assists and two steals in 38 minutes at ASU. It's his first double-digit scoring game since Dec. 7, 2021, vs. Dallas Christian, and his ninth such game as a Texan.
• Noah McDavid: Noah McDavid had a career-high (and game-high) four steals at ASU, surpassing his previous career-highs of three steals against Stephen F. Austin (Jan. 8) and Dixie State (Dec. 30) last season. He also added four points and two assists in 22 minutes.

 
 
NUMBERS TO KNOW
 

• 12: Tarleton had 12 steals at Arizona State, their most in a game since Jan. 16 at Grand Canyon. They had four instances of 12+ steals in a game last year. The 12 steals marked the MOST BY A SUN DEVIL OPPONENT in a game since Washington had 12 against them on Feb. 1, 2020.
• 10: The Texans played 10 of their 18 MEMBERS ON THEIR ROSTER on Monday. Shamir Bogues and Shakur Daniel played the most by far, nearly playing the entire game, at 39 and 38 minutes, respectively.
• 8: Tarleton's will have eight DAYS IN-BETWEEN their game Thursday and the next one. Their Nov. 18 contest against Belmont will be far from Stephenville, part of the Paradise Jam held in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.
• 27: Last season in the home opener, Tarleton won by 27 points, their LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY on the year, beating Paul Quinn 69-42. The Texans forced a season-best 26.4 opposing field goal percentage, including a 1-of-19 (.053) clip from beyond the arc.

 
 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
The Texans next game will take place in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, where they will face off against Belmont on Nov. 18, the first day of the Paradise Jam. Depending on results, Tarleton will play either George Mason or Boston College on Nov. 19, or 20. They will play a final game against an undetermined opponent on Nov. 21, to finish off the tournament.