WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Midwestern State battles old rival Texas Wesleyan Saturday night at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Senior guard D'monta Harris scored a team-high 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds in a 75-64 loss to No. 7 West Texas A&M Thursday night at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. The Mustangs held the Buffs 33 points below their team season scoring average of 103 points per game and to a 40.3 percent shooting night including 5-of-20 from the 3-point line. The Mustangs connected on 45.6 percent from the field. Senior guard Darius Thompson scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half, while freshman guard Evan McCarthy knocked down three triples to also tally 14.
 
MUSTANGS FALL IN HOME OPENER
Midwestern State fell to 44-8 all-time in home openers at D.L. Ligon Coliseum taking a 75-64 loss to No. 7 West Texas A&M. It was the first home opening setback since the Mustangs fell 88-83 to Dallas Baptist on Nov. 15, 2008. That loss preceded a 41-game home court winning streak for the Mustangs.
 
MUSTANGS, RAMS RENEW ACQUAINTANCESHIP
Midwestern State and Texas Wesleyan competed 82 times on the hardwood over a 52-year stretch from 1947 to 1998. The Mustangs own a 56-26 edge in the series, but the programs will play in a regular season game for the first time in 21 years Saturday night at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. The 82-game history of the series ranks as the fourth longest running competition in men's basketball program history behind Wayland Baptist (103 games), Texas A&M-Commerce (92) and Abilene Christian (83). MSU boasts a 26-2 record against the Rams at Ligon Coliseum. Midwestern won the last 14 meetings under the dome with Texas Wesleyan's last win coming by a 62-54 score on Feb. 19, 1983. Here are the results of the last 10 meetings between Midwestern State and Texas Wesleyan:
 

Date	Result	Location
11/17/98	Midwestern State 93, Texas Wesleyan 80	Wichita Falls
11/25/97	Midwestern State 69, Texas Wesleyan 67	Fort Worth
11/19/96	Midwestern State 100, Texas Wesleyan 92	Wichita Falls
11/21/95	Texas Wesleyan 89, Midwestern State 76	Fort Worth
1/30/95	Midwestern State 91, Texas Wesleyan 80	Wichita Falls
1/22/94	Midwestern State 94, Texas Wesleyan 83	Wichita Falls
11/20/93	Midwestern State 98, Texas Wesleyan 89	Fort Worth
2/15/93	Midwestern State 89, Texas Wesleyan 74	Wichita Falls
12/9/92	Texas Wesleyan 103, Midwestern State 100	Fort Worth
1/30/92	Midwestern State 80, Texas Wesleyan 62	Wichita Falls

 
ABOUT THE RAMS
Texas Wesleyan improved to 4-1 with a 124-59 win over Dallas Christian Thursday night at Sid Richardson Center. The Rams make their first trip out of Fort Worth Saturday night at Midwestern State. The game will count as an exhibition for Texas Wesleyan. The 124 points scored in the rout of Dallas Christian were the most for the program since beating Hillsdale Freewill Baptist 142-97 on Dec. 18, 2008. Senior guard Sam Lorenzen paces a quartet of Rams with double-figure scoring averages at 14.8 points per game. He is joined by junior forward Akeem White (12.6 ppg), sophomore guard Peyton Sallee (10.2 ppg) and junior forward Sebastian Karwoski (10.0 ppg). Two-time Sooner Athletic Conference Coach of the Year Brennen Shingleton enters his eighth season at the helm leading the Rams to their second NAIA Division I national championship in 2017. Texas Wesleyan was picked to finish seventh in the Sooner Athletic Conference Preseason Poll.
 
MUSTANGS AGAINST NON-NCAA D1/D2 PROGRAMS
Midwestern State owns a 64-5 record against opposition outside of NCAA Division I/II since making the move to D2 prior to the 1996-97 season. That includes a 51-3 record against the same foes at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. MSU peeled off 48 consecutive wins over non-D1 and D2s from Nov. 25, 1997 until Oklahoma Wesleyan ended the run 80-74 on Jan. 1, 2014. The Mustangs dropped an exhibition to Wylie College prior to last season then lost to Mid-America Christian (84-79) and USAO (77-70) during the 2018-19 regular season.
 
HARRIS POLL: TRENDING UP
Senior guard D'monta Harris buried two 3-pointers on his way to a season-high 15 points Thursday against No. 7 West Texas A&M. The 6-5 native of Pontiac, Mich. Also matched a season-high with eight rebounds. Harris has connected on a 3-pointer in 11 consecutive games dating back to last season and remains perfect at the free throw line (7-for-7).
 
THOMPSON TOPPING 'STANGS
Senior guard Darius Thompson leads Midwestern State's attack scoring 14.7 points per game. The senior from Memphis tallied 12 of his 14 points in the second half Thursday night against West Texas A&M and has shot better than 50 percent in each of his last two outings. Thompson has buried seven triples over his first three games while dishing out 3.3 assists per game.
 
PRESENTING McBUCKETS
Freshman Evan McCarthy erupted for 14 points connecting on 3 of his 4 shots from beyond the arc Thursday night in a season-high 26 minutes against No. 7 West Texas A&M. The 5-10 guard from Mansfield is now 5-of-7 from 3-point range (71.4 percent) and 8-of-13 from the field (61.5 percent).
 
ALL ABOARD WITH COACH LESLIE
Justin Leslie makes the move to Wichita Falls following a highly successful run at Azusa Pacific. He led his alma mater to an average of 22 wins per season in his 12 season at the helm including nine 20-win campaigns, two Pacific West Conference titles and an NCAA Division II Elite Eight appearance in 2015.  Currently, Leslie boasts a 266-124 record (.682) as a collegiate head coach.
 
UP NEXT
Midwestern State hits the road to take on Central Oklahoma Wednesday night Hamilton Fieldhouse in Edmond. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.