STEPHENVILLE, Texas (Interstat) — Tarleton State pulled away in the second half to defeat Merrimack 76-62 in a non-conference men’s basketball game Tuesday at Wisdom Gym. The Texans outscored the Warriors 42-31 after halftime.

Chris Mpaka led all scorers with 24 points for Tarleton State, adding four blocks. Freddy Hicks contributed 18 points, five assists and four blocks for the Texans. Ernest Shelton scored 20 points for Merrimack, which shot just 32.8 percent from the floor and committed 20 turnovers. The Warriors fell to 0-3, while Tarleton State evened its record at 2-2.