STEPHENVILLE, Texas — Tarleton State Men's Basketball is quickly back in action returning home for its of their final four non-conference matchups of the season starting with Howard Payne on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. at the EECU Center.

The Texans are a perfect 4-0 in the EECU Center so far this season. Tarleton State will play three of their next four at home to round out the non-conference slate. The Purple and White have always been successful at home boasting a 55-17 home record in their D1 era.

The contest will be streamed on ESPN+ with Byron Anderson and Hek'ma Harrison on the call. The game will also be streamed on the radio by 90.5 KTRL and available online on the Tarleton Sports Radio Network. Live Stats will be provided by Stat Broadcast. For the latest updates, content and highlights, follow @tarletonmbb on Instagram and X.

With a slew of missing Texans, it was Ocypher Owens and Kaia Isaac's turn to step up against Cincinnati. The two accounted for 24 shots from the floor with 11 falling through the net. Owens led the team with 16 points, six boards and four assists, setting new season-bests in points and assists. Isaac's 13-point night started quickly when he scored the first five Texan points of the game.

The Texans were without seven players traveling with just a 12-player squad in a 76-58 loss at Cincinnati. Among those players missing was leading scorer Dior Johnson and big man Chris Mpaka who have now missed the past two games. AJ Dent Jr and DJ Dormu remain out after missing the rest of the season after the first two games. The seven accounted for 54.1 percent of the Texans points this season heading into the matchup. Despite not having those seven, the Texans still were within two points at the half, 31-29.

So far this season 13 different Texans have scored at least 10+ in at least one game this season. Freddy Hicks leads the way with seven total followed by Dior Johnson with five. Johnson has five 20+ efforts and three 30+ efforts, both the only Texan to reach those marks. Chris Mpaka joins Johnson as the only Texan with multiple 20+ games. Last season at the end, the Texans had 13 total score at least 10 in a game with five players accomplishing the feat in at least 10 games.

A common power of all Billy Gillispie teams has been a strong defense. Once again, this team has one of the best in the country. The Texans rank 11th in the nation in forced turnovers per game (17.67) a stat that they ranked second in at the conclusion of last season. The Purple and White are third in the WAC and 66th in the nation with 8.9 steals per game. The Texans are 4-2 this season when they win the turnover battle, 71-48 in their D1 era.

Dior Johnson currently sits second in the nation with 23.6 points per game and 20th with 165 total points. Johnson leads the WAC in both categories as well as free throws made (54) and he also ranks sixth in the nation. He is also 73rd in the nation and third in the WAC with 50 made field goals.

Tarleton State is 11th in the nation and leads the WAC in bench points per game. The Texans 353 bench points is fourth in the nation in total bench points. The Tarleton State bench has outscored their starters in six games this season, with their leading scorer coming off the bench in each. Bench points account for 52.7 percent of their total points.

Howard Payne opened the season winning their first five contests and have now dropped three of their last four. HPU ranks 12th in all of NCAA D2 in scoring per game. The Jackets are also 16th in the nation in steals per game. They have scored at least 98 points in five of their eight games this season. Leading scorer Armonie Ramey has scored at least 10 points in every game this season. He had a season-high 43 points in a loss to McMurry. Ben Phillip has been the three-point threat for HPU making at least three from in deep in three games with a pair of games sinking four each.

The Texans have won the last nine consecutive meetings, as well as 11 of the last 12. Coach Gillispie has won his only two meetings against HPU with a 60-point win in 2021 and a 17-point victory last season. Tarleton State is 14-4 against the Yellow Jackets, owning an 11-1 record since 1988. Howard Payne is 0-11 against D1 programs since 2020, holding an 0-5 record against ACU. Chris Mpaka was one of two Texans to post a double-double in last year's matchup with 19 points and 12 boards.

Tarleton State will close out the week with the second game of a men's and women's basketball double header. The Texans will host Cameron (OK) with tip off slated for 4:30 p.m.