Southern Utah Thunderbirds vs Abilene Christian Wildcats Prediction, 2/21/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Southern Utah Thunderbirds vs Abilene Christian Wildcats

Date: Saturday, February 21, 2026

Location: Moody Coliseum in Abilene, TX

TV: ESPN+

The Southern Utah Thunderbirds (9-17) are headed to Moody Coliseum on Saturday where they will play the Abilene Christian Wildcats (12-14).

The Southern Utah Thunderbirds faced UT Arlington and earned the victory with a final of 78-73 in their last contest. Southern Utah ended having earned a 53.8% field goal percentage (28 out of 52) and made 6 of 18 shots from 3-point land. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Thunderbirds made 16 of 23 shots for a rate of 69.6%. In the matter of hauling in rebounds, they earned 35 with 9 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 16 assists for the contest as well as creating 9 turnovers and getting 2 steals. In relation to defense, Southern Utah allowed their opponent to shoot 40.7% from the floor on 24 out of 59 shooting. UT Arlington doled out 13 dimes and had 9 steals for this game. In addition, UT Arlington pulled down 26 rebounds (11 offensive, 15 defensive), but didn't have a block. UT Arlington finished shooting 69.0% at the charity stripe by converting 20 of 29 tries. They also converted 5 out of their 15 tries from beyond the perimeter. In regard to personal fouls, the Thunderbirds finished with 20 and UT Arlington recorded 21 personal fouls.

Elijah Duval is a player who came through in this contest. He ended up shooting 58.3% from the field and also recorded 3 assists. He was on the court for 22 mins and also snagged 2 boards. He ended up finishing with 20 points on 7 out of 12 shooting.

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Southern Utah enters this matchup with a win-loss record of 9-17 for the year. They are turning it over 14.2 times per game and as a group they commit 16.2 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Southern Utah is snagging 36.3 boards per game and has earned 368 assists so far this year, which ranks 195th in D-1 in terms of passing the rock. The Thunderbirds are hitting 33.9% on shots from 3-point land (192 of 567) and 72.3% from the free throw line. They are averaging 76.1 points per contest (176th in Division 1) while going 45.7% from the floor.

Defensively, the Thunderbirds are forcing 11.0 turnovers per game while drawing 17.6 fouls. They are ranked 196th in college in giving up assists with 360 relinquished this season. The Thunderbirds defense is allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 45.8% (770 of 1,682) and they concede 36.8 rebounds per game as a unit. They are giving up 37.0% from 3-point land and they are 325th in college hoops in PPG allowed (79.6).

The last time they took the hardwood, the Abilene Christian Wildcats went home defeated by a final of 65-62 against Tarleton State. When talking about attacking the glass, Abilene Christian allowed Tarleton State to snag 26 in total (2 on the offensive side). They shot 25.0% from beyond the arc by shooting 3 of 12 and finished the contest at 26 of 35 at the free throw line (74.3%). The Wildcats permitted Tarleton State to convert 18 out of 41 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 43.9% in the matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Wildcats ended up going 23 out of 62 from the field which had them shooting 37.1%. In regard to shots from beyond the arc, Abilene Christian made 2 of their 19 attempts (10.5%). They were able to knock down 14 of them for a clip of 56.0%. Tarleton State had 22 fouls in this game which got the Wildcats to the charity stripe for a total of 25 attempts. They gave up possession 18 times, while recording 13 steals for the game. The Wildcats recorded 26 defensive boards and 13 offensive rebounds for a total of 39 for the game.

Bradyn Hubbard ended up having an impact for the Wildcats in this game. He totaled 24 points in his 38 mins on the hardwood and accounted for 1 assist for this game. He buried 8 out of 19 for this game for a rate of 42.1%, and had 8 rebounds.

Abilene Christian has a record of 12-14 for the season. The Wildcats commit 20.5 fouls every game and they hit 69.9% from the charity stripe. Their rate of earning assists is at 13.7 times per game (206th in college hoops) and they are turning it over 14.5 times per game. Abilene Christian has accumulated 1,823 pts on the year (70.1 per game) and they grab 32.8 boards per game. As an offense, the Wildcats are hitting on 43.4% from the field, which is 287th in college.

The Abilene Christian defense gives up 37.3% on 3-point shots (149 of 400) and opponents are making 72.5% of their free throw attempts. They allow 11.5 assists and 30.9 boards every game, which is ranked 43rd and 26th in those categories on the defensive end. The Wildcats on the defensive side of the court are 91st in the country in PPG given up with 70.7. They have forced 16.5 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 47.9% from the field (345th in the nation).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Southern Utah

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