Tarleton State Texans vs Southern Utah Thunderbirds Prediction, 2/7/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Tarleton State Texans vs Southern Utah Thunderbirds

Date: Saturday, February 7, 2026

Location: America First Events Center in Cedar City, UT

TV: ESPN+

The Southern Utah Thunderbirds (8-15) will go up against the Tarleton State Texans (11-11) at America First Events Center on Saturday.

The Tarleton State Texans took the court against Utah Tech and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 65-59 in their last contest. In regard to personal fouls, the Texans ended up with 11 and Utah Tech finished the game with 13 personal fouls. They made 12 of their 24 attempts from three-point range. Utah Tech walked away from this one shooting 37.5% at the charity stripe by knocking down 3 of 8 attempts. Moreover, Utah Tech grabbed 26 boards (5 offensive, 21 defensive), but didn't record a block for the team. Utah Tech recorded 11 dimes and had 9 steals for the contest. In regard to the defense, Tarleton State allowed the other team to shoot 50.0% from the field on 25 of 50 shooting. They also doled out 6 assists for the matchup while forcing 12 turnovers and getting 7 steals. In regard to rebounding, they collected 38 with 16 of them being of the offensive sort. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Texans made 14 of their 17 shots for a rate of 82.4%. Tarleton State finished the contest with a 34.4% FG percentage (21 of 61) and knocked down 3 out of their 23 shots from distance.

Camron McDowell is someone who was a major factor for this game. He went 42.9% from the floor but finished the game without a dime. He played 30 minutes and also snagged 5 rebounds. He was able to score 16 points on 6 out of 14 shooting.

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Tarleton State will enter this contest with a mark of 11-11 for the season. They currently have an average of 78.0 pts per game (141st in college) while going 45.4% from the field. The Texans are shooting 32.3% from downtown (109 of 337) and 76.4% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Tarleton State is pulling down 33.6 boards per game and has 267 dimes for the campaign, which ranks 326th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. They are losing possession via turnover 14.6 times per contest and as a team they are committing 20.0 personal fouls every game.

When they are on defense, the Texans have forced 18.7 turnovers per game and they draw 20.3 fouls. They concede 35.3% on shots from distance and they are 202nd in college in points per game allowed (74.3). The Texans defense is giving up an opponent FG percentage of 46.6% (543 of 1,166) and they concede 33.2 rebounds per game as a team. They are ranked 171st in college hoops in giving up assists with 301 relinquished so far this season.

When they last stepped on the court, the Southern Utah Thunderbirds went home victorious with a score of 79-76 when they faced Abilene Christian. Regarding how they attacked the glass, Southern Utah allowed Abilene Christian to get 14 overall (5 offensive). They finished shooting 34.8% from three-point range by connecting on 8 of 23 and ended up shooting 6 out of 12 at the free throw line (50.0%). The Thunderbirds allowed Abilene Christian to convert 31 out of 60 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 51.7% in this contest. When this game wrapped up, the Thunderbirds finished 29 for 43 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 67.4%. Concerning shooting from beyond the arc, Southern Utah buried 3 out of 6 tries (50.0%). They were able to make 18 of the free throws for a rate of 85.7%. Abilene Christian was called for 17 fouls for the matchup which took the Thunderbirds to the free throw line for a total of 21 shots. They turned the ball over 22 times, while recording 2 steals for the contest. The Thunderbirds were able to snag 23 defensive boards and 5 offensive boards for a total of 28 in this game.

Elijah Duval pitched in for the Thunderbirds for the contest. He converted 11 of 13 in this matchup for a field goal rate of 84.6%, and tallied 7 rebounds. He accumulated 27 points in his 38 minutes on the court and added 3 dimes for the game.

Southern Utah has a mark of 8-15 for the year. The Thunderbirds commit 16.4 fouls per game and they shoot 72.9% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 14.1 times per game (182nd in the nation) and they are turning it over 14.1 times per contest. Southern Utah has accounted for 1,775 points for the season (77.2 per game) and they grab 36.4 rebounds per game. On the offensive side of the ball, the Thunderbirds are shooting 45.9% from the field, which has them ranked 147th in D-1.

The Southern Utah defense concedes 36.7% on 3-point attempts (169 of 460) and opponents are connecting on 71.0% of their foul shots. They give up 14.2 assists and 37.1 boards per contest, which is 249th and 320th in Division 1. The Thunderbirds on the defensive side of the court are 330th in D-1 in PPG surrendered with 80.5. They are forcing 11.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 45.9% from the field (285th in college).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Tarleton State

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