Texas-Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros vs Southern Utah Thunderbirds Betting Pick & Prediction 2/3/24

The Vaqueros and Thunderbirds are set to face off at 8:30 ET on ESPN+. The Thunderbirds will host the game at America First Events Center in Cedar City, UT. The over/under for this game is set at 158 points, and Southern Utah is favored by -10.5 vs. Texas-Rio Grande Valley in a Western Athletic conference matchup.

TEXAS-RIO GRANDE VALLEY VAQUEROS VS SOUTHERN UTAH THUNDERBIRDS BETTING PICK

The Pick: Southern Utah Thunderbirds -10.5

This game will be played at America First Events Center at 8:30 ET on Saturday, February 3rd.

WHY BET THE SOUTHERN UTAH THUNDERBIRDS:

  • We have this one finishing with a projected score of 79-65 in favor of the Thunderbirds.
  • Not only will Southern Utah pick up the win, but look for them to cover at -10.5.
  • The over/under is currently sitting at 158 points, and we like the under with a projected 144 points.

Will Texas-Rio Grande Valley Secure A Victory as Road Underdogs?

After a 81-64 loss to Utah Tech, the Vaqueros are 6-15 overall and have dropped four in a row. In Western Athletic Conference play, Texas-Rio Grande Valley is 2-8 compared to 4-7 in non-conference games.

As the underdog, the Vaqueros are 3-14 this season. On the road, Texas-Rio Grande Valley is 1-7 with an average scoring differential of -13.0 points. Over their last 10 road games, the Vaqueros are 1-9.

As the underdog, Texas-Rio Grande Valley has an ATS record of 8-9 this season and they are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as the underdog. On the road, the Vaqueros have an ATS mark of 4-4 this year and they are 2-3 ATS in their last 5 road games. Overall, Texas-Rio Grande Valley has an ATS record of 8-11 this season.

Today’s over/under line of 158 is higher than the average over/under line in Texas-Rio Grande Valley’s games this season (151.5). Over their last three games, the average scoring total is 136 points.

In contrast to their season average of 73.6 points per game, the Texas-Rio Grande Valley had a below average performance. They scored 64 points against Utah Tech and had a field goal percentage of 39.3%. The team’s scoring leader is Elijah Elliott, who holds an average of 14.6 as they head into today’s matchup. Additionally, Hasan Abdul-Hakim is averaging 13.9 points per game this season.

The Vaqueros’ defense is presently ranked 299th nationally, allowing an average of 79.3 points per contest. Texas-Rio Grande Valley’s three-point defense is currently 57th in the country at 6.0 made threes per game. In terms of overall field goal percentage, opponets have hit 42.6% of their shots vs. Texas-Rio Grande Valley.

Does Southern Utah Have a Shot at a Home Win?

After losing their last game to UT Arlington by a score of 76-68, Southern Utah comes into this matchup with an overall record of 8-13. Their record at home this season is 3-4, and over their last ten games at home, they have gone 5-5.

So far this season, the Thunderbirds have been the favorite in five games and have gone 3-2 in those matchups. They have gone 3-9 on the road this season, and their average scoring margin on the road is -3.2 points per game.

As the favorite this season, Southern Utah has gone 3-2 vs. the spread. Their overall ATS record is 14-5, including a mark of 4-3 at home. Over their last 10 games as the favorite, the Thunderbirds have gone 4-6 vs. the spread.

Southern Utah’s over/under record for the season is 11-8 and the average over/under line in their games is 147.4. So far, 18 of their games have had lower over/under lines than today’s line of 158. In their last three games, the average scoring total is 145 points and their OU record over their last 10 games is 3-6.

The Southern Utah offense is coming off a game in which they scored 68 points vs. UT Arlington. Overall their field goal percentage was 35.4% while connecting on 4 threes. Prophet Johnson was the leading scorer for the Thunderbirds, putting up 16 points. In addition, Zion Young contributed 16 points.

Coming into the game, Southern Utah will be looking to improve their defense, as they are currently giving up 77.4 points per game (278th). In today’s game vs. Texas-Rio Grande Valley, the Southern Utah defense will be looking to do a better job avoiding putting opponents on the line. In their last game, Southern Utah made 18 free-throws vs. the Thunderbirds.