UT Rio Grande Vaqueros vs Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders Prediction, 1/26/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: UTRGV Vaqueros vs Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders

Date: Monday, January 26, 2026

Location: American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, TX

TV: ESPN+

The UTRGV Vaqueros (9-11) are headed to American Bank Center on Monday where they will take on the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders (11-9).

The UTRGV Vaqueros faced Houston Christian and notched a win by a score of 68-51 in their last game. With respect to personal fouls, the Vaqueros left the arena with 8 and Houston Christian recorded 6 personal fouls. They made 6 out of their 16 attempts from distance. Houston Christian shot 62.5% from the free throw line by burying 5 of 8 attempts. Furthermore, Houston Christian snagged 26 rebounds (9 offensive, 17 defensive), but couldn't earn a rejection. Houston Christian doled out 14 assists and had 6 steals for this game. Regarding the defense, UT Rio Grande allowed the other team to shoot 42.6% from the floor on 20 out of 47 shooting. They also distributed 22 assists in this matchup in addition to forcing 18 turnovers and getting 11 steals. In reference to pulling down boards, they earned a total of 20 with 1 of them being offensive. From the charity stripe, the Vaqueros knocked down 4 of 4 attempts for a percentage of 100.0%. UT Rio Grande ended the game with a 52.8% FG percentage (28 out of 53) and converted 8 of 18 3-pointers.

Marvin McGhee III is one guy who played a role in the matchup. He totaled 17 points on 6 of 9 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 35 minutes and grabbed 6 boards. He shot 66.7% from the field and totaled 2 assists.

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UT Rio Grande comes into this matchup with a win-loss record of 9-11 on the campaign. They turn it over 11.9 times per game and as a team are committing 17.2 fouls per contest. As a unit, UT Rio Grande is snagging 34.8 rebounds per game and has accounted for 338 assists so far this year, which ranks 56th in the nation in terms of passing the ball. The Vaqueros are hitting 37.4% on three-point shots (185 of 495) and 72.7% from the free throw line. They have an average of 74.0 points per game (246th in college hoops) while connecting on 46.3% from the floor.

On the defensive end of the court, the Vaqueros are forcing their opponents into 11.9 turnovers per game while drawing 15.3 fouls. They relinquish 31.4% on shots from beyond the arc and they are ranked 76th in Division 1 in PPG from their opponents (69.5). The Vaqueros are giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 41.5% (476 of 1,148) and they relinquish 34.6 boards per game as a squad. They are ranked 242nd in college in giving up assists to the opposition with 288 conceded on the campaign.

The last time they took the court, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders walked away with a victory by a final of 79-71 when they faced Incarnate Word. When it comes to cleaning the glass, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi permitted Incarnate Word to pull down 30 in total (11 on the offensive side). They wrapped up this game 37.0% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 10 of 27 and finished the contest at 9 of 15 at the free throw line (60.0%). The Islanders permitted Incarnate Word to bury 26 of their 58 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.8% for this contest. Overall, the Islanders ended up shooting 25 for 48 from the floor which had them at 52.1%. Pertaining to shooting from distance, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi converted 8 out of 14 attempts (57.1%). They were able to knock down 21 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 58.3%. Incarnate Word was called for 28 fouls for the contest which took the Islanders to the charity stripe for 36 shots. They coughed up the ball 15 times, while earning 12 steals in this contest. The Islanders were able to collect 22 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive rebounds for a total of 33 in this game.

Sheldon Williams was important for the Islanders in this game. He tallied 22 points in his 30 minutes on the court and earned 3 dimes in the matchup. He made 7 out of 8 in the matchup giving him a rate of 87.5%, and earned 11 rebounds.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi has a win-loss mark of 11-9 for the year. The Islanders commit 19.6 personal fouls every game and they connect on 66.1% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 13.9 times per game (204th in the country) and they turn the ball over 13.1 times per game. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi has scored 1,477 pts this year (73.9 per contest) and they pull in 37.5 boards per game. When it comes to offensive execution, the Islanders are connecting on 45.3% from the floor, which has them ranked 182nd in the country.

The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi defense gives up 29.5% on shots from beyond the arc (114 of 387) and their opponents are making 70.0% of their free throw shots. They have conceded 11.7 assists and 33.1 boards per contest, which has them ranked 57th and 94th in those categories on the defensive end. The Islanders defensively are ranked 35th in college in PPG surrendered with 66.9. They are able to force 14.9 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 41.9% from the floor (82nd in college hoops).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

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