Kingsville - Fresh off of a defensive battle with the No.5 Texas Woman's Pioneers, the Texas A&M-Kingsville women's basketball team is set to host the RV UT-Tyler Patriots in the teams' second Lone Star Conference matchup of the season (Saturday, 1:00 p.m.).
The game will be the final home contest of the calendar year for the Javelinas, who are looking to close out 2025 with the first win of their season. It will also be Deck the SPEC, with pictures with Santa, and Centennial Beers available for purchase, as well as a bouncy house during pregame and halftime.
Despite falling just short of the Pioneers in the team's home opener on Thursday night, Kingsville forced TWU into 18 turnovers and held the team to a season-low in scoring (52), 21 points below its season average entering the matchup. TAMUK will try to carry that defensive momentum in Saturday's matinee - the team now ranks seventh in the LSC in scoring defense (60.8 points allowed per game).
"Our defense is well ahead of our offense at this point," Head Coach
Michael Madrid said. "We have to tighten up offensively in the sense of valuing the ball, sharing the ball, and making shots."
Kingsville and Tyler have met just 12 times before, with the Patriots bringing a 7-5 advantage in the all-time head-to-head record into the weekend. The Javelinas, however, are 3-3 when the game is played in Kingsville, and won their last matchup with UT-T, when the teams met in the first round of the LSC Tournament Quarterfinals last year.
Scouting the Competition: RV The University of Texas at Tyler Patriots
Tyler, who finished 13-1 in the East Division last year, and opened the season with a top-10 ranking in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's National Poll, has begun the season 4-4. The Patriots are still receiving votes in the WBCA's National Poll, and got back in the win column last weekend at the South Central Region Challenge in Pueblo, CO - splitting a pair of games over Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opponents.
The team's conference-opening game against the Dustdevils of Texas A&M-International on Thursday brought its record back down to .500, as TAMIU got a 57-53 win over the Patriots.
Tyler's defense has been nothing short of stellar to start the year, as they hold opponents to just 50.5 points per game (1st in the LSC). Not only that, but the team also leads the conference in forced turnovers (24.5 per game). Seven different players on the team average at least one steal per game, led by senior guard Mileina Sablinskaite and junior guard Polina Latysheva, who each average at least 3.0 per game.
Tyler's offense has been a balanced one to start the year, with no single player averaging more than 11 points per game, but three putting up at least 7.9 per contest. That scoring depth is reflected in the team's rotation, which sees 10 different Patriots playing at least 10 minutes per game.
"Our focus is always on us," Madrid said. "We want to play to the best of our abilities and do it collectively. We like where this team is trending. More importantly, we enjoy coaching this group."
Javelina Quick Hitters:
- TAMUK leads the conference on the glass, holding opponents to an LSC-best 30.4 total rebounds per game - its + 0.8 rebound margin is the eighth-best in the LSC
- Sophomore forward Thalia Daniels has had a strong start to her career in the blue and gold, averaging the second-most points per game on the team and leading the squad on the glass with 6.6 rebounds per game (10th in the LSC)
- Freshman forward Justine Aguilar has been excellent in her first four games of collegiate basketball - she leads the team in scoring despite having not yet started a game for the Javelinas
- Aguilar also ranks near the top of the country in free throw percentage, having made 15 of the 16 that she has attempted so far this season (20th in the nation, second in the LSC)
