STEPHENVILLE, Texas — Tarleton State Men's Basketball hosts UT Arlington for senior day in its regular season finale on Thursday night at the EECU Center with tip-off slated for 7 p.m.
 
The Texans (14-16 overall, 5-12 WAC) heads to Riverside for the second time this season to take on the UT Arlington Mavericks (15-13, 7-9). The season series is tied at one, with both games coming at the College Park Center in Arlington.
 
The game will be streamed on ESPN+ with Byron Anderson and Scott Garner on the call.  Kyle Crews will have the radio call on 90.5 KTRL and online on the Tarleton Sports Radio Network. For the most up to date highlights, news and updates follow @tarletonmbb on Instagram and X.
 
The Texans can finish as high as the fifth seed or as low as the seventh seed. Tarleton State needs a win and a pair of losses in their final two games from ACU and Southern Utah to tie for fifth and own the tiebreaker with the Thunderbirds. If Southern Utah wins either of its last two games, the Texans will be either the sixth or seventh seed, and do not own the tiebreaker with the Wildcats. The Texans would need CBU to be the regular season champion if the Texans, Wildcats and Thunderbirds all finish 6-12, as then Tarleton State would be the fifth seed, otherwise the Texans will be seventh.
 
Dior Johnson returned for the Texans after missing eight-straight games with his last appearance on Jan. 21 at UT Arlington. Johnson led the Texans in scoring for the 11th & 12th  time this season with his 11th & 12th 20+ scoring efforts of the year on the road trip. He totaled 23 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists at UVU and then followed it up with 24 pts, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 10/11 FT at CBU. He scored 12 first half points at CBU. In the second half at Utah Valley, he ran off 11-straight Texan points. He took 20 shots or more for the fourth time this year at UVU. The junior has played nine games in the WAC this season and would lead the WAC with 24.3points per game, if he had the qualifying amount of games played. Johnson has missed 12 games total this season with a four-game stretch earlier in the year.
 
Tarleton State is averaging 17.73 forced turnovers per game, the most in the NCAA. Last season the Texans finished second in the category. So far this season, the Purple and White have forced at least 20 turnovers in eight games. The Texans are also second in the nation in steals per game averaging 10.5. The squad has snagged double digit steals in 14 of the last 19 contests. The Texans are also 26th in the nation with a +3.2 turnover margin.
 
Chris Mpaka returned to the lineup after missing the first game of the road trip against Utah Valley. Mpaka scored 11 off the bench notching a team-best seven rebounds and two blocks. He made six of his seven shots from the charity stripe at CBU. After missing four games due to injury, he played three before missing another game. Mpaka started each of his first 18 games. Since, he has come off the bench in each of his last four appearances.
 
Dior Johnson became the fifth player in D1 since 200 to score 500+ points without a single start. Johnson has played in 53 collegiate games, with 0 starts at both his D1 stops. The junior is one of two players this season to record 400 points or more this season without a single start. The only other player is Madden Collins of American U. He ranks seventh since 2000 in total points without a start in a single season. He needs just 17 to tie Aaron Holliday for 6th overall. Only one player, Malcolm Miller has scored 500+ without a start. Johnson is averaging 23.86 points per game, ranking third in the NCAA, despite not being a qualifier. AJ Dybantsa leads with 24.9 followed by ECU's Jordan Riley (24.0).
 
Jordan Mizell needs just five more steals to total 100 in his Texan career. Only three Texans have reached the milestone in the D1 era in their career. He currently ranks fourth in the D1 era, just ahead of Shakur Daniel (94). He has already surpassed his total from last season of 42, currently recording 53 this season.
 
UT Arlington enters the game positioned as the fourth seed in the WAC Tournament. A win and an SUU loss would clinch the four seed for the Mavs. The Mavericks are led by Marcel McCreary who is averaging 13.3 points per game on the season and 13.9 points per game in WAC play. McCreary leads the WAC shooting 83.9 percent from the free throw line. UTA is led by their defense. The squad tops the nation allowing opponents to make just 27.3 percent of their three-point shots. They are also 30th in the nation and lead the WAC allowing opponents to score just 67.4 points per game. UTA dropped five-straight to begin February. After a 13-point win vs. Utah Tech, the Mavs have lost their last two heading into the matchup. The Mavericks are on their second game of three-game road trip to end the regular season.
 
The Texans will have the final weekend of the regular season off and will await the conclusion of those games to know the fate of their first game. The Texans will play their first game of the WAC Tournament on either Wednesday or Thursday at the Orleans Arena.