SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State men's basketball team returns to Strahan Arena this week for a pair of Sun Belt Conference games against Little Rock on Jan. 17 and Arkansas State on Jan. 19. The Little Rock contest tips off at 7 p.m. Thursday night. ESPN+ will televise the game and it can be heard on AM 1300 in Austin and the Texas State Sports Network at www.tunein.com.
 
Texas State enters the game with a 14-3 overall record and a 3-1 mark in Sun Belt Conference play after winning a pair of road games at Coastal Carolina (65-61 on Jan. 10) and at Appalachian State (70-69 on Jan. 12). Little Rock is 7-10 this season with a 2-2 slate against Sun Belt Conference games after beating Troy (73-59 on Jan. 10) and South Alabama (91-62 on Jan. 12) in Little Rock.
 
THE HEAD COACHES
Danny Kaspar has moved among the five winningest coaches at Texas State after capturing his 88th victory at the school. Kaspar ranks 22nd among NCAA Division I active head coaches with a 553-284 career record.
 
The Trojans are coached by former NBA guard and Arkansas standout Darrell Walker. Walker is in his first season at Little Rock and owns a 52-28 career record in three seasons.
 
ABOUT TEXAS STATE
Texas State enters Thursday night's game ranked No. 22 in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major poll after moving up two spots in this week's poll. This marks the fifth straight week that the Bobcats have been ranked in the poll. In addition to last week's No. 24 ranking, Texas State was ranked No. 20 on Dec. 17, and No. 21 on Dec. 24 and 31
 
The 14-3 record is Texas State's best start for a single season since 1959-60 when Texas State won a NAIA national championship.
 
The Bobcats enter the Little Rock game with a 6-1 record in home games this season after splitting their first two Sun Belt Conference games against Georgia Southern and Georgia State. TXST won its first five home games with victories over Air Force, Harding Simmons, Rice, Houston Baptist and Howard Payne.
 
Nijal Pearson ranks ninth among Sun Belt Conference leaders in scoring with 17.7 points per game. He is the third-best three-point shooter in the league with a .423 (47-111) percentage.  Pearson is 11th in field goal percentage with a .446 (112-251) percentage and in steals with 1.4 per game.
 
Tre'Larenz Nottingham averages 13.1 points per game to rank 20th among the league's scoring leaders. Nottingham is 14th among Sun Belt steals leaders with 1.3 per game.
 
Alex Peacock ranks sixth among the Sun Belt's rebounding with a 7.4 average. His 2.9 assist average is tied for 13th among league leaders.
 
Jaylen Shead averages 5.0 assists per game and ranks second among Sun Belt Conference leaders.
 
BATTLE OF PERCENTAGES
The top defensive team in the Sun Belt Conference will face the league's best shooting team when Texas State hosts Little Rock.
The Bobcats enter the game leading the Sun Belt in scoring defense (61.8 ppg), field goal percentage defense (.384) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.290).
Little Rock leads the Sun Belt Conference in field goal percentage (.499). The Trojans rank fourth in scoring offense (78.3 ppg) and three-point percentage (.374). 
 
SCOUTING LITTLE ROCK >>
Little Rock is led by junior guard Rayjon Tucker, who ranks third among Sun Belt leaders with 20.1 points per game. He is the fifth-best shooter in the league with a .508 (101-199) field goal percentage and ranks 15th in free throw percentage with .746 (88-118).
Freshman Markquis Nowell is averaging 4.5 assists to rank fourth in the Sun Belt. He also is averaging 12.0 points per game.
Sophomore Jaizek Lottie is fifth among Sun Belt leaders in assists (4.3 per game) and steals (1.7 per game).
 
ALL-TIME SERIES vs. THE TROJANS
Texas State enters Thursday night's game with a 4-8 series record against Little Rock. The series began on Dec. 21, 1994. The Bobcats are looking to win their third straight game against the Trojans after winning the last two games, 56-49 on Feb. 11, 2017 in San Marcos, and 72-70 on Jan. 13, 2018 in Little Rock.
 
UP NEXT FOR THE BOBCATS
Following the Little Rock game, Texas State concludes its two-game homestand with a Sun Belt Conference contest against Arkansas State. The game begins at 2 p.m. (Central). The Red Wolves are 8-9 overall with a 2-2 record in Sun Belt contests this season heading into Thursday night's contest at UTA.