New Mexico Lobos vs Tulsa Golden Hurricane Prediction, 4/2/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: New Mexico Lobos vs Tulsa Golden Hurricane

Date: Thursday, April 2, 2026

Location: Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN

TV: ESPN

Odds/Point Spread: New Mexico (-3)

The New Mexico Lobos (26-10) are en route to Hinkle Fieldhouse on Thursday where they will meet the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (29-7) in the NIT Semifinals. New Mexico opens this matchup as 3-point favorites. The betting total is set at 160.

The New Mexico Lobos took the court against Saint Joseph's and notched a win by a score of 84-69 in their last game. In relation to fouls, the Lobos ended up walking away with 11 while Saint Joseph's racked up 20 fouls. They made 9 out of their 33 tries from 3-point land. Saint Joseph's ended up going 72.7% when shooting free throws by converting 8 of 11 shots. Moreover, Saint Joseph's pulled down 31 boards (7 offensive, 24 defensive), but didn't have a block. Saint Joseph's distributed 12 dimes and had 7 steals for the game. In regard to defense, New Mexico allowed the other team to shoot 40.0% from the field on 26 out of 65 shooting. They also recorded 13 assists in this contest in addition to forcing 9 turnovers and earning 6 steals. When it comes to grabbing boards, they collected a total of 38 with 6 of them being offensive. At the free throw line, the Lobos converted 22 of 28 tries for a rate of 78.6%. New Mexico finished the contest with a 47.5% field goal percentage (28 of 59) and buried 6 out of their 20 three-point attempts.

Tomislav Buljan is one guy who was a major factor for the contest. He notched 27 points on 12 of 18 shooting. He played for 32 minutes and pulled down 11 boards. He ended up going 66.7% from the field and also dished out 2 assists.

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New Mexico heads into this one with a mark of 26-10 so far this season. They turn it over 10.5 times per game and as a squad are committing 17.2 fouls per game. As a unit, New Mexico is pulling down 36.9 rebounds per game and has accounted for 544 assists on the year, which has them ranked 61st in D-1 in terms of passing. The Lobos are shooting 36.3% on 3-pointers (338 of 932) and 72.9% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 81.5 points per game (54th in D-1) while hitting 46.3% from the floor.

On the defensive end of the court, the Lobos are forcing 13.6 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 19.0 fouls. They relinquish 30.0% on shots from downtown while they are 95th in college in opponents points per game (70.8). The Lobos defensively are giving up a field goal percentage of 41.9% (872 of 2,080) and they relinquish 34.3 boards per game as a team. They are 268th in the country in giving up assists to their opponents with 475 surrendered for the campaign.

When they last stepped on the court, the Tulsa Golden Hurricane walked away with a victory by a final of 83-79 against Wichita State. When it comes to cleaning up the glass, Tulsa allowed Wichita State to grab 40 in all (11 offensive). They went 10.5% from 3-point land via 2 of 19 and walked away from this one shooting 29 out of 31 from the charity stripe (93.5%). The Golden Hurricane allowed Wichita State to make 24 out of their 64 tries from the floor which gave them a percentage of 37.5% for the contest. When all was said and done, the Golden Hurricane finished the game shooting 25 for 65 from the field which gave them a rate of 38.5%. Concerning 3-point attempts, Tulsa made 12 of their 29 tries (41.4%). They were able to bury 21 of them for a percentage of 87.5%. Wichita State committed 21 fouls in this game which got the Golden Hurricane to the charity stripe for a total of 24 shots. They turned it over 9 times, while getting 7 steals in this matchup. The Golden Hurricane earned 26 defensive rebounds and 10 offensive rebounds for a total of 36 in this contest.

Miles Barnstable ended up being a major contributor for the Golden Hurricane in the matchup. He earned 24 points in his 35 minutes on the hardwood, but wasn't able to notch an assist. He made 6 out of 15 for the game giving him a field goal percentage of 40.0%, and totaled 4 rebounds.

Tulsa has a mark of 29-7 this season. The Golden Hurricane are committing 16.1 personal fouls every game and they connect on 77.9% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 15.4 times per game (94th in college) and they cough up possession 10.6 times per game. Tulsa has tallied 3,073 points so far this year (85.4 per contest) and they collect 38.7 boards per game. As an offensive team, the Golden Hurricane are shooting 47.0% from the floor, which has them ranked 66th in the nation.

The Golden Hurricane on defense are ranked 161st in D-1 in points allowed per contest with 73.3. They have forced 10.7 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 42.6% from the field (82nd in the nation). The Tulsa defense concedes 32.0% on 3-point attempts (284 of 887) and opponents are connecting on 72.3% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 12.5 assists and 32.8 rebounds per contest, which is 100th and 76th in college hoops.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take New Mexico (-3)

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