UC Santa Barbara Gauchos vs UC Riverside Highlanders Prediction, 2/12/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UC Santa Barbara Gauchos vs UC Riverside Highlanders

Date: Thursday, February 12, 2026

Location: SRC Arena in Riverside, CA

TV: ESPN+

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (16-8) are on their way to SRC Arena on Thursday where they will play the UC Riverside Highlanders (8-17).

The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos stepped onto the hardwood against UC Irvine and went home with a win by a final score of 84-79 in their last contest. UC Santa Barbara wrapped up the contest having earned a 50.9% field goal percentage (29 of 57) and knocked down 7 of 23 3-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Gauchos buried 19 of their 25 attempts for a rate of 76.0%. Regarding hauling in rebounds, they earned a total of 36 with 12 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 11 dimes for the contest as well as forcing the other team into 10 turnovers and getting 7 steals. In relation to the defense, UC Santa Barbara allowed the other team to go 50.0% from the field on 31 of 62 shooting. UC Irvine doled out 14 assists and had 7 steals in the matchup. On top of that, UC Irvine pulled down 25 rebounds (6 offensive, 19 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. UC Irvine walked away from this one shooting 92.3% at the free throw line by making 12 of 13 attempts. They also buried 5 of their 14 shots from beyond the arc. Regarding personal fouls, the Gauchos ended up finishing with 11 and UC Irvine finished the game with 20 personal fouls.

Aidan Mahaney is one guy who was a major contributor in this game. He went 58.3% from the floor and recorded 3 assists. He saw the court for 39 mins and also collected 2 rebounds. He ended up finishing with 21 points on 7 of 12 shooting.

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UC Santa Barbara will play this contest with a record of 16-8 this year. They cough up possession 12.7 times per game and as a group they are committing 18.2 fouls per game. As a unit, UC Santa Barbara is snagging 34.9 rebounds per game and has accounted for 362 dimes on the season, which is 127th in college in terms of passing. The Gauchos are shooting 38.2% on shots beyond the perimeter (215 of 563) and 76.0% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 79.3 pts per contest (111th in Division 1) while hitting 48.3% from the field.

When they are on the defensive end, the Gauchos are forcing 12.7 turnovers per contest and they draw 18.5 personal fouls. They are ranked 116th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 305 surrendered for the year. The Gauchos defensively are giving up a shooting percentage of 46.7% (598 of 1,281) and they relinquish 28.9 boards per game as a unit. They give up 36.2% on shots from distance and they are 149th in the country in opponents points per game (72.6).

The last time they took the court, the UC Riverside Highlanders took a loss by a final score of 88-74 against Cal State Northridge. The Highlanders collected 22 defensive rebounds and 14 offensive rebounds totaling 36 for the contest. They also coughed up the ball 13 times, while getting 7 steals in the game. Cal State Northridge was called for 13 fouls in the matchup which took the Highlanders to the free throw line for a total of 13 shots. They were able to bury 12 of them for a percentage of 92.3%. With respect to shooting from distance, UC Riverside converted 10 out of 38 tries (26.3%). When the final whistle blew, the Highlanders went 26 for 69 from the floor which gave them a rate of 37.7%. The Highlanders permitted Cal State Northridge to make 35 out of their 60 attempts from the floor which gave them a percentage of 58.3% for this contest. They finished the game shooting 61.5% from beyond the arc by going 8 of 13 and finished the contest at 10 of 22 from the free throw line (45.5%). In relation to team rebounding, UC Riverside permitted Cal State Northridge to get 30 overall (5 offensive).

Marqui Worthy ended up being a major contributor for the Highlanders for the game. He buried 12 of 25 for this contest for a field goal percentage of 48.0%, and totaled 4 rebounds. He had 36 points in his 38 mins of playing time and tallied 1 assist for the matchup.

UC Riverside has a record of 8-17 for the year. The Highlanders are committing 18.8 personal fouls every game while shooting 72.7% from the free throw line. They are earning an assist 12.5 times per contest (288th in the nation) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 13.4 times per contest. UC Riverside has totaled 1,806 pts for the season (72.2 per game) and they average 34.6 rebounds per contest. When it comes to offense, the Highlanders are shooting 43.5% from the floor, which is 280th in Division 1.

The UC Riverside defense gives up 35.3% on shots from behind the 3-point line (165 of 468) and their opposition makes 68.6% of their shots from the free throw line. They have allowed 13.8 dimes and 35.4 boards per contest, which ranks them 212th and 235th in the nation. The Highlanders on the defensive end are ranked 293rd in D-1 in points allowed per game with 78.2. They are able to force 11.1 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 47.9% from the floor (344th in D-1).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take UC Riverside

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