The Teams: Tarleton State Texans (7-15, 4-9 WAC) vs. UT Arlington Lady Mavs (11-12, 7-6 WAC)
Where: Stephenville, Texas
Arena: Wisdom Gym (3,000)
Day and Time: Thursday at 7 p.m. CT
Streaming Platform: ESPN+ (Byron Anderson, Laura Sadler)
Radio: Tarleton Sports Network (Clayton Neville)
 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP

• This is the 10th all-time matchup. UTA owns an 8-1 advantage, with the first six played between 1977-91. UTA won the first meeting this season 73-49 thanks to a 28-11 third quarter.
• In the WAC standings, Tarleton is tied-eighth, and UTA is fifth, separated by 3.0 games.
• UTA is 10-4 since starting the season 1-8. They've averaged 89.0 PPG over their last two games.
• UTA is familiar with the transfer portal. Their top four scorers are transfers, including two from WAC teams SFA and Seattle U. They lost the reigning WAC WBB Player of the Year to the portal.     

 
QUICK HITS

• With a win, the Texans will earn their eighth victory, which would match their number of wins across the entire season in 2022-23. They already have double the amount of WAC wins (four).
• The Texans are 3-3 over their past six. In the three wins Tarleton averaged 68.3 points on 70-of-159 (.440) shooting. In the three losses Tarleton averaged 55.7 points on a 59-of-196 (.301) clip.
• With a W, TSU would go 2-1 on their three-game homestand, their longest since Jan. 11-19, 2023.
• With a W, Tarleton could potentially improve to seventh in the WAC Standings.
• The Texans have led at halftime in five of their last six games. They are now 6-3 when leading at the break. They're only allowing opponents to average 31.1 points in first halves this year.
• Tarleton's bench has outscored the opposing bench 163-85 over the past six games.
• The Texans have outrebounded their opponents in each of the last two games, 83-69 total.
• The Texans own one of the top defenses in the WAC. They're third in scoring defense (65.2 PPG), fourth in opposing field goal percentage (.390) and third in opposing three-point percentage (.295). They also average the most blocks (4.0) in the WAC.
• The whistles have favored the Texans over the past six games, with opponents recording 24 more fouls. The Texans haven't had more fouls than their opponents in any of the last six games.
• Tarleton's leading scorer, Jakoriah Long, is sixth in the conference in FT percentage (.771).

 
WHO'S HOT

• Jakoriah Long: Long just recorded a career-high four steals to go with 15 points, her second straight 15-point contest. Over the last four games, she's 22-of-25 (.880) on free throws and has made at least one three in 10 of her last 11 games.
• Faith Acker: Acker nearly posted her second double-double of the season after recording a team-high 17 points and nine rebounds against Seattle U. It marked her eighth game at 20-plus minutes. In those games, she averages 14.4 PPG and 7.6 RPG. She had 10 rebounds against UTA on Jan. 4.
• Miannah Little: After scoring in double figures twice over her first 15 games of the season, Little has scored 10-plus points three times over the past five games. She just dished out a tied-career-high four assists, matching her total from her night against SFA on Nov. 29.

 
NUMBERS TO KNOW

• 70: The Texans are 5-0 this season when SCORING AT LEAST 70 POINTS. They average 17.8 assists in those games, which is about five more than their season average.
• 40: The Texans have forced their opponent to shoot under 40 percent in back-to-back games. They've now forced their opponent to SHOOT UNDER 40 PERCENT 12 times in 22 games this season.
• 8: Thursday marks Tarleton's Play4Kay game. The nationwide movement has raised over EIGHT MILLION DOLLARS in the fight against all cancers affecting women.
• 12: Of Tarleton's 15-woman roster, the Texans have three returners and 12 newcomers. Their 12 NEWCOMERS ARE TIED FOR THE MOST among all NCAA D1 programs, along with Utah State and fellow WAC program UT Arlington.

 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
The Texans have will have the weekend off before a trip out west to take on the WAC's top-two ranked teams, Grand Canyon and California Baptist. They'll start with the Lopes in Phoenix on Thursday at 7 p.m. CT.