| MATCHUP | Southern Utah Thunderbirds | UT Arlington Mavericks |
|---|---|---|
| Team Records | 10-22 | 18-13 |
| Where | Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, NV | |
| When | Thursday, March 12, 2026 | |
| Time | 09:00 PM EDT | |
| TV | ESPN+ | |
Southern Utah Thunderbirds Betting Preview
Back in early January the Thunderbirds were coming off a seven-game losing streak and sitting at 4-13 overall. Southern Utah won their next three, then fell to Utah Tech, Texas-Arlington, Tarleton State and Cal Baptist in the next five. It’s been a 2-4 run since then with losses to Tarleton State, Abilene Christian, Utah Valley and Cal Baptist for a 10-21 record this year.
In the Cal Baptist matchup last weekend the Thunderbirds were in the locker room at halftime looking up at a 45-32 deficit on the scoreboard. Southern Utah hit a 43-37 run the rest of the way but it wasn’t enough for the comeback in an 82-75 loss on their home floor. Leading the team in scoring was Elijah Duval with 30 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals.
TX-Arlington Mavericks Betting Preview
Over on the Texas-Arlington side, they managed to get through their first 20 games this year with a 14-6 overall record. The Mavericks lost to Cal Baptist, Utah Tech, Utah Valley, Abilene Christian and Southern Utah in the next five, then beat Utah Tech before losses to Utah Valley and Cal Baptist. It’s been wins over Tarleton State and Abilene Christian since then for a 17-13 run.
In the Abilene Christian matchup over the weekend the Mavericks came back out onto the floor in the second half with a 33-25 deficit. Texas-Arlington finished off the game with a much-improved 39-24 run however, and eventually powered out the comeback win 64-57 on the road. Leading scorer Cash Chavis put up 16 points with six rebounds and two steals.
Southern Utah Thunderbirds @ UT Arlington Mavericks Betting Trends: March 12, 2026
Why the UT Arlington Mavericks will win
- Southern Utah has lost four of its last five games against Conference opponents.
- UT Arlington has won the first half in seven of its last eight Thursday games against the Western Athletic Conference.
Why the Southern Utah Thunderbirds will win
- UT Arlington has lost five of its last six games against non-AP-ranked opponents at a neutral venue.
- Southern Utah has won nine of its last 12 games against non-AP-ranked opponents at a neutral venue.
Matchup/League Facts
- UT Arlington ranks 3rd among Division 1 teams for opponent three-point field goal attempts per game this season (16.9).
- UT Arlington ranks 358th among Division 1 teams for three-point field goals made per game this season (5.0).
- Southern Utah ranks 33rd among Division 1 teams for pace this season (71.4).
Southern Utah vs TX-Arlington Prediction
I’ll lean toward Southern Utah in this one. The Thunderbirds didn’t shoot great from 3-point range in their latest loss to Cal Baptist (21.1 percent on 4-of-19) and they gave up 53.3 percent shooting on defense. Southern Utah was competitive in the paint but got beaten on the boards 33-24 in the loss. The Thunderbirds are just 1-4 in their last five games but they’ve scored 74 or more points in all of those outings.
These teams have met three times this year, with Southern Utah losing two of those. In the most recent meeting on the road February 14, the Thunderbirds pulled off a 78-73 win, though. In that one Southern Utah hit an excellent 53.8 percent from the field while holding the Mavs to just 40.7 percent. The Thunderbirds added a 35-26 rebounding edge but did have 16 turnovers along the way. This one seems like a coin flip, and should be a good one to watch.