Texas vs UTRGV 12/3/21 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros will travel to Frank Erwin Center to take on the 7^th ranked Texas Longhorns this Friday night in College Basketball action.

The UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros lost their 2^nd straight game and dropped to 4-4 on the season after being defeated by the Texas A&M-CC Islanders, 83-77, this past Wednesday. UT Rio Grande Valley struggled defensively in the 2^nd half against Texas A&M-CC and could not fight back after the Islanders took a 66-59 lead with 4:49 left in regulation. UT Rio Grande Valley shot 50.9% from the field & 33.3% from beyond the arc while allowing Texas A&M-CC to shoot 42.4% from the field & 27.8% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Vaqueros was Justin Johnson who had 33 points, 8 rebounds, & 4 assists.

On the season, UT Rio Grande Valley is averaging 76.5 ppg on 45.9% shooting from the field. The Vaqueros are averaging 6.4 three-pointers per game on 33.6% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, UT Rio Grande Valley has been led by Justin Johnson (20.8 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.0 spg), Ricky Nelson (12.6 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 4.6 apg), LaQuan Butler (11.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 2.4 apg), & Marek Nelson (10.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 1.9 apg, 1.8 spg).

Defensively, UT Rio Grande Valley is allowing their opponents to average 80.5 ppg on 45.2% shooting from the field. The Vaqueros have a rebound margin of -2.5 and a turnover margin of -0.6.

The 7^th ranked Texas Longhorns won their 4^th straight game and improved to 5-1 on the season after defeating the Sam Houston Bearkats, 73-57, this past Monday. Texas was solid offensively against Sam Houston and had no trouble pulling away for the victory after taking a 58-44 lead with 8:46 left in the 2^nd half. Texas shot 54.5% from the field & 50.0% from beyond the arc while allowing Sam Houston to shoot 41.5% from the field & 38.1% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Longhorns was Marcus Carr who had 19 points, 3 rebounds, & 4 assits.

On the season, Texas is averaging 74.7 ppg on 49.5% shooting from the field. The Longhorns are averaging 7.7 three-pointers per game on 39.0% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Texas has been led by Timmy Allen (13.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.0 spg), Andrew Jones (10.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.5 apg, 2.3 spg), Courtney Ramey (10.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.3 spg), & Marcus Carr (8.5 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 4.0 apg, 1.3 spg).

Defensively, Texas is holding their opponents to an average of 54.8 ppg on 41.2% shooting from the field. The Longhorns have a rebound margin of 2.7 and a turnover margin of 6.7.

The Vaqueros are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games, however, are 0-5-1 ATS in their last 6 games following a ATS loss. The Longhorns are 8-4 ATS in their last 12 games, however, are just 3-7 ATS in their last 10 Friday games.

UT Rio Grande Valley is a team that likes to push the pace and score the basketball and although the Vaqueros have been decent at putting points up on the board, their defense has really struggled as they currently rank just 331^st in scoring defense & 278^th in defensive FG%. Texas continues to pile up wins against lower-tier competition and have been led by their defense that ranks 5^th in scoring defense & 8^th in turnover margin. Texas is no doubt the better team and will get an easy victory in this one, however, the Longhorns have only beaten one team by 30+ this season and as UT Rio Grande Valley recently were competitive against a decent Illinois team on the road, I think the play here is to take the Vaqueros and the points. Good Luck!