ABILENE – Tarleton men’s basketball dropped its second straight game on the road against old rival Abilene Christian 69-48 on Saturday at the Teague Center.
The loss snaps a nine-game winning streak for the Texans against the Wildcats, dating back to their days as Lone Star Conference foes. Turnovers handcuffed the Texans (1-2) throughout the game, with a season-high 28 mishaps against the Wildcats, who had 30 points off turnovers to improve to 5-0 on the season.
Tarleton had an early 3-2 lead against ACU, but it was the only lead of the game as the Wildcats got hot from behind the arc to build a 25-15 lead on four 3-pointers just 12 minutes into the contest. Jonathan Jackson Jr. posted seven points and Montre’ Gipson tallied six for the Texans in the first half, as the Texans trailed 35-25 at the break. Jackson and Gipson were the only Texans in double figures, with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
In the first half, Tarleton missed its only 3-point attempt after making eight 3s against Texas A&M on Tuesday. The Texans went 1-8 on 3s in the game, with Konstantin Dotsenko converting on the lone shot in the second half.
The Texans struggled at the free throw line as well, missing a dozen foul shots and going 17-29 at the line on the night. Tarleton was within eight in the second half after four straight points from Tahj Small, who had six points on the night, before ACU went on a 17-5 run over the next five minutes to extend the lead to 20.
Shakur Daniel led the Texans defensively with career highs in rebounds (8) and steals (5) along with a personal-best six points. Shamir Bogues also added six points with two steals and two blocks. Freddy Hicks had five points, but battled foul trouble before fouling out late in the game.
Tarleton will have two days to prepare for its next contest, as they travel to Spokane, Washington to take on No. 1 Gonzaga on Tuesday, Dec. 8.
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