SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State men's basketball team returns to action at 8 p.m. on Wednesday against Tarleton State in a Lone Star Conference game at Wisdom Gym in Stephenville.

The Rams (5-15, 2-10 LSC) are looking to snap a five-game losing streak and also take the season series against the Texans (12-6, 5-5 LSC). ASU won the first meeting between the two schools 57-52 on Dec. 5 in San Angelo. TSU will come into this game on a conference-best four-game winning streak and with an 11-2 record on its home court.

“They are a team that has improved,” ASU head coach Fred Rike said. “They are very talent and we're going to have to bring our 'A' game to beat them in Stephenville. They are a team that we can beat if we stick to our game plan and if we can rebound better than we have been.”

Jovan Austin led the Rams with 19 points and Antonio Dye added 16 in the first game against Tarleton State. Austin is averaging 12.6 points per game in his freshman season and is also leading the Rams with 72 assists and 33 steals. Dye, the lone senior on ASU's roster, is scoring 11.4 points per game and leads the team with 5.2 rebounds per game (93 total).

Dakota Rawls averaged 14.5 points per game last week and comes into this week scoring 10.8 points per game and leading the conference by shooting 88 percent from the free-throw line (45 of 51). Bryan Hammond, who was the LSC's Offensive Player of the Week two weeks ago, is averaging 10.1 points per game and has 61 assists and 16 steals this season. Chris Talkington is adding 10.8 points per game and leads the Rams with 37 3-pointers this season. Talkington is shooting 45 percent from beyond the arc, which ranks fifth in the conference.

Angelo State is shooting 40 percent from the field this season and 36 percent on 3-pointers. The Rams are shooting 72 percent from the free-throw line as a team, but have struggled rebounding throughout the year.

“We're trying to get to the basket more and our field goal percentage is going up,” Rike said. “We are also shooting more free throws. We are trying to attack more.”

In last Saturday's loss at WT, the Rams were limited to 15 rebounds in the game and have been out-rebounded 763-625.  

“I thought we played well on Saturday, but it was a game where they had a 14-2 run at the end of the first half that was the difference in the game,” Rike said. “I thought our guys played hard. Our problem continues to be rebounding. They beat us on the glass.”

Tarleton State comes into the game after stringing together wins over West Texas A&M, McMurry and a pair of victories over Texas A&M-Commerce. TSU knocked off A&M-Commerce 68-55 on Saturday and have limited opponents to 58.6 points per game this season. The Texans are holding opponents to 40 percent shooting from the field and lead the conference with 4.4 blocks per game (80 total).

Chuck Guy leads the Texans with 11.8 points per game in his junior season and is fifth in the conference with 4.3 assists per game (78 total). Coleman Furst is adding 10.8 points per game and De'Andre Upchurch 10.7. Jon Cathey-Macklin was named the LSC'S Defensive Player of the Week on Monday and leads the conference with 1.4 blocks (26 total) this season. Furst is third in the conference by shooting 47 percent on 3-pointers.

The Angelo State-Tarleton State game will be broadcast locally on KKSA with a simulcast on AngeloSports.com with Jeremy Bryant on the call. Angelo State holds a 35-29 all-time advantage over the Texans.