2023–24 Tarleton State Texans men's basketball team
American college basketball season
The 2023–24 Tarleton State Texans men's basketball team represented Tarleton State University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season . They were led by fourth-year head coach Billy Gillispie and played their games at the Wisdom Gym as members of the Western Athletic Conference . They finished the season 25–10, 16–4 in WAC play , to finish in second place. As the No. 2 seed in the WAC tournament , they lost to UT Arlington in the semifinals. They received an invitation to the CIT , where they defeated Texas A&M–Corpus Christi in the first round, and fellow WAC member Abilene Christian in the quarterfinals, before losing to Purdue Fort Wayne in the semifinals.
This season marked Tarleton State's final year of a four-year transition period from Division II to Division I . As a result, the Texans were not eligible to play in the NCAA tournament , but were eligible to play in the WAC tournament .
On November 14, just four games into the season, head coach Billy Gillispie took a medical leave of absence, leaving Joseph Jones as the acting head coach. Gillespie later signed a two-year contract extension on March 5, but announced he would remain in an advisory role for the remainder of the season in order to fully recover.[ 1]
Previous season
The Texans finished the season 17–17, 9–9 in conference play, to finish in seventh place. In the WAC tournament , the team defeated UT Rio Grande Valley in their first round game before falling to Utah Valley . While not eligible to be invited to the NCAA tournament during their four-year transition from Division II to Division I , the Texans were invited to the College Basketball Invitational . They were defeated by the Radford in the first round to end their season.
Roster
2023–24 Tarleton State Texans men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Previous school
Hometown
G
0
Izzy Miles
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Fr
Grissom HS
Huntsville, AL
G
1
Miles Lewis
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
160 lb (73 kg)
Jr
Sacramento HS
Sacramento, CA
F
2
Traivar Jackson
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
210 lb (95 kg)
Jr
West Anchorage HS
Anchorage, AK
G
3
Quinton Perkins II
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
173 lb (78 kg)
Fr
Lake Highlands HS
Rowlett, TX
G
4
Lue Williams
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
197 lb (89 kg)
Sr
Coastal Alabama CC–South
Atmore, AL
F
5
KiAndre Gaddy
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
215 lb (98 kg)
Sr
Walla Walla
Dallas, TX
F
6
Jakorie Smith
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
215 lb (98 kg)
Sr
East Mississippi CC
Utica, MS
G
7
Kaya Mutambirwa
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Fr
Real Madrid HS
Geneva, Switzerland
G
8
Joseph Martinez
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
RS Fr
Canutillo HS
El Paso, TX
F
9
Emmanuel Innocenti
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
198 lb (90 kg)
Fr
ITC Piero Calamandrei
Ranzanico, Italy
G
10
Adam Moussa
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
Sr
Black Hills State
Cairo, Egypt
G
11
Bubu Benjamin
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Fr
Edge HS
Medicine Hat, AB
G
12
Nasan Ayala
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
188 lb (85 kg)
Jr
Pratt CC
Queens, NY
G
13
Devon Barnes
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
171 lb (78 kg)
So
Shiloh HS
Hinesville, GA
C
20
Kevin Paul Jr.
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
202 lb (92 kg)
Fr
Open Tent Academy
Grand Prairie, TX
G
22
Jalen Thomas
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Sr
Oklahoma Panhandle State
Amarillo, TX
F
23
Dario Domingos
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
250 lb (113 kg)
Jr
UT Arlington
Midland, TX
G
26
Jayden Gordon
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
159 lb (72 kg)
Fr
Harlan HS
San Antonio, TX
F
40
Blake Brinkmeyer
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
225 lb (102 kg)
Sr
Kirkwood CC
West Des Moines, IA
G
76
Zaakir Sawyer
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
208 lb (94 kg)
Jr
Trinity Valley CC
Dallas, TX
F
77
Adil Lalji
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
So
Seattle Pacific
Seattle, WA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Roster Last update: October 27, 2023
Schedule and Results
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
High points
High rebounds
High assists
Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 30, 2023 *8:00 p.m., ESPN+
Howard Payne
W 105–42
30 – Smith
15 – Gaddy
4 – Miles
Wisdom Gym (720)Stephenville, TX
Regular season
November 6, 2023 *6:00 p.m.
at Virginia
L 50–80
0–1
11 – Barnes
5 –
3 – Benjamin
John Paul Jones Arena (14,080)Charlottesville, VA
November 9, 2023 *6:00 p.m.
at FIU
W 82–65
1–1
34 – Smith
14 – Gaddy
5 –
Ocean Bank Convocation Center (1,242)Miami, FL
November 11, 2023 *7:00 p.m., ESPN+
UNT Dallas
W 93–52
2–1
20 – Gaddy
13 – Innocenti
5 – Barnes
Wisdom Gym (1,040)Stephenville, TX
November 14, 2023 *7:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Bradley SoCal Challenge campus game
L 63–86
2–2
16 –
6 – Williams
1 –
Carver Arena (4,032)Peoria, IL
November 20, 2023 *4:00 p.m., ESPN+
vs. Austin Peay SoCal Challenge Sand Division semifinal
W 66–59
3–2
28 – Smith
7 –
4 –
The Pavilion at JSerra (113)San Juan Capistrano, CA
November 22, 2023 *4:30 p.m., FloHoops
vs. Cal State Bakersfield SoCal Challenge Sand Division championship
W 59–40
4–2
17 – Smith
13 – Innocenti
5 – Moussa
The Pavilion at JSerra (259)San Juan Capistrano, CA
November 29, 2023 6:30 p.m., ESPN+
at Stephen F. Austin
W 68–66
5–2 (1–0)
18 – Williams
9 – Williams
3 – Lewis
William R. Johnson Coliseum (2,032)Nacogdoches, TX
December 2, 2023 4:00 p.m., ESPN+
UT Rio Grande Valley
W 77–75
6–2 (2–0)
18 – Gaddy
10 – Gaddy
5 – Barnes
Wisdom Gym (1,327)Stephenville, TX
December 5, 2023 *7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Hardin–Simmons
W 92–56
7–2
16 – Williams
6 – Benjamin
3 – Moussa
Wisdom Gym (1,210)Stephenville, TX
December 12, 2023 *7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Sterling
W 85–47
8–2
17 – Smith
12 – Gaddy
4 – Smith
Wisdom Gym (605)Stephenville, TX
December 18, 2023 *7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Jacksonville State
L 62–65
8–3
20 – Barnes
9 – Innocenti
4 –
Wisdom Gym (1,754)Stephenville, TX
December 21, 2023 *5:30 p.m., ESPN+
at No. 8 Tennessee
L 46–65
8–4
12 – Barnes
8 – Smith
5 – Williams
Thompson-Boling Arena (17,609)Knoxville, TN
December 29, 2023 *9:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Loyola Marymount
W 79–66
9–4
24 – Gaddy
12 – Gaddy
8 – Innocenti
Gersten Pavilion (818)Los Angeles, CA
January 4, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
UT Arlington
W 78–76
10–4 (3–0)
19 – Innocenti
8 – Jackson
5 – Barnes
Wisdom Gym (1,078)Stephenville, TX
January 11, 2024 9:00 p.m., ESPN+
at California Baptist
L 63–77
10–5 (3–1)
12 – Barnes
5 – Innocenti
2 –
Fowler Events Center (3,676)Riverside, CA
January 13, 2024 8:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Grand Canyon
L 48–74
10–6 (3–2)
11 – Barnes
5 – Gaddy
2 –
GCU Arena (7,233)Phoenix, AZ
January 18, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Abilene Christian
W 79–71
11–6 (4–2)
25 – Smith
9 – Innocenti
4 –
Wisdom Gym (2,104)Stephenville, TX
January 20, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+
at UT Rio Grande Valley
W 77–73
12–6 (5–2)
28 – Williams
8 – Gaddy
7 – Innocenti
UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,514)Edinburg, TX
January 25, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Southern Utah
L 70–73
12–7 (5–3)
22 – Barnes
9 – Innocenti
5 – Innocenti
Wisdom Gym (1,677)Stephenville, TX
January 27, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+
Utah Tech
W 86–68
13–7 (6–3)
28 – Smith
7 – Innocenti
7 – Moussa
Wisdom Gym (2,110)Stephenville, TX
February 1, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Abilene Christian
W 76–73 OT
14–7 (7–3)
25 – Williams
12 – Gaddy
3 – Smith
Moody Coliseum (1,652)Abilene, TX
February 3, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+
Stephen F. Austin
W 75–64
15–7 (8–3)
27 – Williams
6 – Gaddy
4 –
Wisdom Gym (2,140)Stephenville, TX
February 8, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Utah Valley
W 72–61
16–7 (9–3)
21 – Williams
10 – Innocenti
4 –
UCCU Center (1,985)Orem, UT
February 10, 2024 5:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Seattle
W 82–77
17–7 (10–3)
26 – Smith
7 –
4 – Innocenti
Redhawk Center (966)Seattle, WA
February 15, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
at UT Arlington
W 80–78
18–7 (11–3)
22 – Williams
7 – Innocenti
5 –
College Park Center (2,110)Arlington, TX
February 22, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Grand Canyon
W 77–74
19–7 (12–3)
24 – Smith
14 – Gaddy
4 – Innocenti
Wisdom Gym (3,000)Stephenville, TX
February 24, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+
California Baptist
W 82–65
20–7 (13–3)
33 – Barnes
5 –
10 – Moussa
Wisdom Gym (2,276)Stephenville, TX
February 29, 2024 8:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Utah Tech
W 85–74
21–7 (14–3)
24 – Smith
8 – Williams
5 – Smith
Burns Arena (1,440)St. George, UT
March 2, 2024 6:30 p.m., ESPN+
at Southern Utah
W 88–83
22–7 (15–3)
22 – Smith
8 – Gaddy
6 – Moussa
America First Event Center (1,119)Cedar City, UT
March 7, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+
Utah Valley
L 60–63
22–8 (15–4)
18 – Barnes
8 – Smith
3 – Jackson
Wisdom Gym (N/A)Stephenville, TX
March 9, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+
Seattle
W 69–66
23–8 (16–4)
21 – Gaddy
10 – Innocenti
5 –
Wisdom Gym (2,024)Stephenville, TX
WAC tournament
March 15, 2024 10:30 p.m., ESPNU
(2)
vs. (3) UT Arlington Semifinals
L 84–87
23–9
24 – Barnes
7 – Innocenti
4 –
Orleans Arena (4,057)Paradise, NV
CIT
March 19, 2024 *6:00 pm, ESPN+
Texas Southern First round – Lou Henson Classic
W 82–71
24–9
21 – Williams
10 – Gaddy
6 – Moussa
Wisdom Gym (1,426)Stephenville, TX
March 20, 2024 *6:00 pm, ESPN+
Abilene Christian Quarterfinals – Lou Henson Classic
W 86–59
25–9
16 – Gaddy
8 – Innocenti
6 – Innocenti
Wisdom Gym (1,576)Stephenville, TX
March 25, 2024 *6:00 pm, ESPN+
Purdue Fort Wayne Semifinals
L 72–73
25–10
16 – Moussa
7 – Smith
4 – Moussa
Wisdom Gym (1,686)Stephenville, TX
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in
Central Time .
Source[ 2]
References
Venues People Seasons NCAA Final Four appearances in italics