SAN MARCOS, Texas — Basketball season is making its return as Texas State women's basketball opens its 2023-24 campaign on Nov. 6. On Monday night at 7 p.m. inside Strahan Arena, the Bobcats will face Arlington Baptist to open the year.
 
The Bobcats enter the year as reigning Sun Belt Conference regular season champions. The team finished the 2022-23 season with a 23-10 record and made the program's third WNIT appearance.
 
This week's matchup will be the Bobcats third in history with Arlington Baptist. The Bobcats won both prior meetings, including the 2022 meeting where the Bobcats won 101-32.
 
Both games can be watched on ESPN+ and live stats are available at TXST.com/stats.
 
WHO'S ON THE ROSTER?

• The Bobcats have eight newcomers and four returners to the team this year, one of the newcomers being Timia Jefferson who transferred to Texas State last season from Houston Christian but has yet to see the court as a Bobcat due to NCAA transfer rules.
• Of the first-year newcomers, five are transfers. Of the five transfers three are from other Division I schools, two are from junior colleges.
• Ja'Niah Henson (Morgan State), Gara Beth Self (ULM), and Jaylin Foster (Western Kentucky) make up the four-year school transfers.
• Tiffany Tullis and Crystal Smith join the Bobcats after two years at Blinn Junior College where the pair reached the NJCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship tournament.
• The Bobcats welcome two freshman, Emillia Steele and Julia Coleman. Coleman is a St. Louis, Missouri native. Steele comes from Euless, Texas.
• Among the returners are seniors Sierra Dickson, Nicole Leff, Morgan Hill and sophomore Kennedy Claybrooks. 

NEW TEAM, EXPERIENCED PLAYERS

• Texas State may have a new look this season but the players on its team have a wealth of experience.
• Of the 12 players, there are just two freshmen and of the 10 non-freshmen, eight of them have played at Texas State or another four-year college prior to coming to Texas State.
• With the exception of sophomore Kennedy Claybrooks, seven of the eight four-year college attendees have played in at least 30 games in their careers, with an average of 69.86 games played each.
• ULM transfer Gara Beth Self has played in 107 games with 70 career starts, the most of any Bobcat.

UPCOMING MILESTONES

• Despite the year just getting underway, there are some career milestones on the horizon.
• Graduate transfer Ja'Niah Henson is nearing the 1,000 point club after finishing her four years at Morgan State with 933 points in 94 appearances, averaging 9.9 per game and 14.0 a night during the 2022-23 season.
• Graduate Timia Jefferson is also nearing in on the 1,000 point club. The Houston Christian transfer had 902 points in three years for HCU where she averaged 12.5 points per game in her 72 appearances.
• Head coach Zenarae Antoine sits with 187 career wins, the most of any head coach in Texas State women's basketball history. With just 13 wins to reaching 200, Antoine also stands to win her 100th Sun Belt Conference game this season, sitting at 99 conference wins this year. Antoine has been the head coach the entire duration of the Bobcats' time in the Sun Belt Conference.

WHATS ON THE HORIZON? 

• Before starting conference play on Dec. 30 versus Georgia State, the Bobcats have a tough 12-game non-conference schedule to get them prepared.
• Following the season opener versus Arlington Baptist, the Bobcats will jump right into the MAC-SBC Challenge pairing with Bowling Green. This game will be the first of two versus a MAC school this season as part of the first year of the MAC-SBC Challenge in men's and women's basketball.
• The Bobcats will then host UTRGV and Sam Houston as part of their in-state matchups. The Bobcats beat Sam Houston 75-70 in last season's meeting.
• Following games at Texas A&M Corpus Christi and UTSA, the Bobcats will host UNT Dallas.
• Texas State will go to Stillwater, Oklahoma to face Oklahoma State in a road match on Dec. 9 before hosting Denver on Dec. 14 in a week of out-of-state matchups.
• To close the non-conference slate, the Bobcats will participate in the Florida International Christmas Tournament from Dec. 18-20. The Bobcats will see FIU, Chicago State and Alabama A&M in that tournament.

The Bobcats next game will be Saturday, Nov. 11 versus Bowling Green at 2 p.m. inside Strahan Arena.