Tonight at 7:00 PM PT on Pac-12 Networks and Cardinal Sports Network Radio, Stanford men’s basketball will open up their season at home against the Tarleton State Texans who hail from Stephenville, Texas. This is the first game of the season for Tarleton State as well.
On Tarleton State: The Texans went 10-10 overall and 5-7 in the WAC last year, so they’re kind of a mid-tier team in that conference. They are led by senior guard Montre Gipson, who averaged 15.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game last season on 54.9% shooting from the field, 50.0% shooting from 3-point range, and 85.2% shooting from the foul line. Forward Jonathan Jackson, Jr. is the number two returning player, averaging 9.3 points per game last season.
As a team, the Texans averaged 73.4 points per game on 46.9% shooting from the field, 37.8% shooting from 3-point range, and 72.1% shooting from the foul line. They also averaged a -1.6 rebound differential, 14.7 assists, 10.5 steals, 2.7 blocks, and 11.6 turnovers per game.
The Texans are new to the Division I level as last season was their first year getting bumped up from the Division II level. They were pretty successful at the DII level, reaching the Final Four in 2015 and the Elite Eight in 2016. So, they are more than deserving of getting a shot at this level and joining the WAC.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first key to winning this game is simply to put the clamps on Gipson. If he has a big night, the Texans have a shot of hanging around. If he’s around his scoring average from last season or lower, Stanford should be in a good spot.
Secondly, Stanford needs to take care of the ball. Tarleton State was pretty good at forcing steals and turnovers last season. They’ll look to do the same tonight and get some easy baskets in transition. Fortunately for Stanford, they have some good ball handlers in Michael O’Connell and Isa Silva, so that shouldn’t be too much of a problem. But still, they have to make sure they’re taking good care of the ball and not getting sloppy with it.
Third, Stanford needs to defend the perimeter. Tarleton State’s 37.8% shooting from deep was pretty solid last year and they’ll look to get some threes to fall early and often. If Stanford can defend the perimeter well and not allow Tarleton State to get threes to fall, they should be in a good spot.
Lastly, Stanford needs to get out in transition. With guys like Harrison Ingram, Isa Silva, and Michael O’Connell, Stanford has the pieces to make things hard on opposing teams in transition. If Stanford is rebounding well, getting out in transition, they should win this game with little trouble.
Prediction: Stanford should win this game on talent alone, but there’s always a chance a small school like Tarleton State makes things more interesting than you’d like. That being said, I do expect an easy win for the Cardinal tonight. Stanford 77 Tarleton State 60 is how I see this playing out.
