Utah Tech Trailblazers vs Abilene Christian Wildcats Prediction, 1/1/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Utah Tech Trailblazers vs Abilene Christian Wildcats

Date: Thursday, January 1, 2026

Location: Moody Coliseum in Abilene, TX

TV: ESPN+

Moody Coliseum is the site where the Abilene Christian Wildcats (8-5) will play the Utah Tech Trailblazers (7-7) on Thursday.

The Utah Tech Trailblazers faced off with Creighton and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 92-69 in their last game. When talking about personal fouls, the Trailblazers ended up with 15 and Creighton had 10 personal fouls. They made 13 out of their 33 attempts from downtown. Creighton finished the game at 73.3% at the free throw line by converting 11 of 15 attempts. Moreover, Creighton collected 29 rebounds (5 offensive, 24 defensive), but didn't record a block for the team. Creighton recorded 23 dimes and had 11 steals in this matchup. Concerning defending, Utah Tech allowed the other team to go 54.0% from the floor on 34 out of 63 shooting. They also doled out 15 assists in the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and having 8 steals. When talking about pulling down rebounds, they compiled 25 with 4 of them being of the offensive sort. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Trailblazers buried 5 of their 8 attempts for a rate of 62.5%. Utah Tech wrapped up the contest having earned a 50.0% field goal percentage (29 out of 58) and made 6 out of their 18 3-point shots.

Ethan Potter is one player who was important in this game. He ended up finishing with 18 points on 9 of 14 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 33 mins played and snagged 8 boards. He finished shooting 64.3% from the field and also recorded 1 assist.

Get all of our NCAA Picks Tonight

Utah Tech will play this game with a win-loss record of 7-7 so far this season. They turn it over 12.9 times per contest and as a group are committing 16.9 fouls every game. As a unit, Utah Tech is pulling down 35.3 rebounds per game and has racked up 194 assists so far this year, which has them ranked 148th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. The Trailblazers are connecting on 30.2% on three-point attempts (104 of 344) and 71.3% from the charity stripe. They average 78.4 pts per contest (166th in the country) while going 47.2% from the field.

On defense, the Trailblazers are forcing 14.0 turnovers per game while drawing 17.8 fouls. They relinquish 30.7% from 3-point land and they are 202nd in college hoops in PPG allowed (73.9). The Trailblazers are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 43.9% (370 of 842) and they surrender 35.6 boards per contest as a group. They currently rank 250th in college in allowing assists to the opposition with 183 conceded so far this year.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Abilene Christian Wildcats walked away with a victory by a final of 75-68 when they played Texas Southern. In reference to cleaning up the glass, Abilene Christian permitted Texas Southern to collect 23 in total (3 on the offensive glass). They shot 27.3% from beyond the arc via 3 out of 11 and walked away from this one shooting 13 of 19 at the charity stripe (68.4%). The Wildcats allowed Texas Southern to convert 26 of their 50 attempts from the field which had them shooting 52.0% in the matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Wildcats shot 24 out of 50 from the field which had them shooting 48.0%. In regard to shooting from distance, Abilene Christian converted 5 of 19 attempts (26.3%). They were able to knock down 22 of the free throws for a percentage of 81.5%. Texas Southern was called for 23 fouls for the contest which got the Wildcats to the charity stripe for 27 attempts. They also gave up possession 14 times, while earning 8 steals in this game. The Wildcats collected 22 defensive rebounds and 7 offensive boards totaling 29 in the game.

Bradyn Hubbard was important for the Wildcats for the contest. He tallied 22 points in his 34 minutes on the court and accumulated 3 dimes in this game. He knocked down 6 of 13 in the game giving him a field goal percentage of 46.2%, and had 6 rebounds.

Abilene Christian has a record of 8-5 on the campaign. The Wildcats have committed 21.4 fouls per contest and they shoot 71.6% from the free throw line. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 14.2 times per contest (204th in college) and they cough up possession 14.2 times per contest. Abilene Christian has accounted for 942 pts so far this season (72.5 per game) and they average 35.0 rebounds per game. As an offensive team, the Wildcats are hitting on 44.4% from the field, which is ranked 246th in the nation.

The Abilene Christian defense allows 35.5% from downtown (77 of 217) and their opponents are knocking down 70.5% of their foul shots. They have surrendered 10.8 dimes and 29.2 total boards per game, which has them ranked 37th and 9th in Division 1. The Wildcats defensively are ranked 100th in the nation in points given up per game with 69.7. They are forcing their opponents into 15.4 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 46.2% from the field (301st in D-1).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Abilene Christian

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Get college basketball picks on every single game, or if you want our very best bets by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.