Tarleton State Texans vs Utah Tech Trailblazers Prediction, 1/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Tarleton State Texans vs Utah Tech Trailblazers

Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026

Location: Burns Arena in St. George, UT

TV: ESPN+

The Utah Tech Trailblazers (9-9) will try to beat the Tarleton State Texans (11-6) at Burns Arena on Saturday.

The Tarleton State Texans stepped onto the hardwood against Abilene Christian and went home with a loss by a final score of 84-80 in their last game. When discussing personal fouls, the Texans ended up finishing with 24 while Abilene Christian recorded 26 personal fouls. They also made 7 of 17 tries from 3-point range. Abilene Christian finished shooting 73.1% from the charity stripe by knocking down 19 of their 26 attempts. On top of that, Abilene Christian totaled 30 rebounds (10 offensive, 20 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Abilene Christian earned 15 assists and had 5 steals in this contest. With regard to defense, Tarleton State allowed the other team to shoot 55.8% from the floor on 29 of 52 shooting. They also distributed 6 assists for the contest while forcing the opposition into 18 turnovers and having 12 steals. When talking about rebounding, they earned 24 with 9 of them being on the offensive end. From the free throw line, the Texans buried 27 of their 29 attempts for a percentage of 93.1%. Tarleton State finished having earned a 46.4% FG percentage (26 of 56) and made 1 of their 6 shots from distance.

Dior Johnson is one player who was a factor for this contest. He finished shooting 47.4% from the floor but had no assists at the end of the game. He played 33 mins played and grabbed 3 boards. He finished with 33 points on 9 of 19 shooting.

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Tarleton State steps onto the hardwood with a win-loss mark of 11-6 on the season. They turn the ball over 14.5 times per contest and as a team are committing 20.0 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Tarleton State is grabbing 33.4 boards per contest and has 212 assists so far this season, which has them ranked 311th in the country in terms of passing the rock. The Texans are hitting 34.5% on three-point attempts (89 of 258) and 76.8% from the free throw line. They are averaging 80.2 pts per contest (114th in the nation) while hitting 47.2% from the floor.

When they are on defense, the Texans are able to force 19.4 turnovers per contest and they draw 20.8 fouls. They are currently ranked 135th in college in giving up assists to the opposition with 220 relinquished so far this year. The Texans defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 45.3% (411 of 908) and they concede 33.0 boards per game as a team. They are giving up 33.6% on 3-point attempts while they are 161st in D-1 in points per game from their opponents (72.6).

The last time they took the court, the Utah Tech Trailblazers took a loss by a final score of 92-76 against Utah Valley. Concerning rebounding, Utah Tech permitted Utah Valley to get 31 overall (9 offensive). They finished 31.6% from three-point range by shooting 6 of 19 and walked away from this one shooting 24 of 27 at the charity stripe (88.9%). The Trailblazers allowed Utah Valley to bury 31 out of their 62 attempts from the floor which gave them a rate of 50.0% for the contest. Overall, the Trailblazers went 26 for 55 from the floor which gave them a rate of 47.3%. In the matter of shots from downtown, Utah Tech converted 6 of their 18 tries (33.3%). They were able to convert 18 of them for a rate of 90.0%. Utah Valley was called for 19 personal fouls for this contest which got the Trailblazers to the free throw line for a total of 20 shots. They gave up possession 17 times, while getting 10 steals for this contest. The Trailblazers recorded 20 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive boards totaling 28 in this matchup.

Jusaun Holt pitched in for the Trailblazers in the matchup. He converted 5 of 13 for the game for a field goal percentage of 38.5%, and had 3 rebounds. He earned 15 points in his 33 mins on the court and totaled 3 assists for the matchup.

Utah Tech has a mark of 9-9 this year. The Trailblazers commit 16.8 personal fouls every game and they go 73.1% from the free throw line. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 14.6 times per game (161st in the nation) and they cough up possession 13.2 times per contest. Utah Tech has scored 1,405 points for the season (78.1 per contest) and they collect 34.4 boards per game. On the offensive side of the court, the Trailblazers are connecting on 47.5% from the field, which ranks them 77th in the nation.

The Trailblazers on the defensive side of the court are 212th in college in PPG given up with 74.5. They are able to force 13.9 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 44.6% from the field (241st in college). The Utah Tech defense surrenders 30.0% on 3-point attempts (109 of 363) and opponents are knocking down 73.6% of their free throw shots. They have relinquished 12.8 dimes and 35.0 boards per contest, which is ranked 137th and 216th in college hoops.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Tarleton State

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