Utah Tech’s men’s basketball team will continue its final Western Athletic Conference (WAC) road trip with a game against Tarleton State on Saturday, February 21, at the EECU Center in Stephenville, Texas. The matchup is scheduled for 3 p.m. MT and will be broadcast on ESPN+ and 99.5 FM The Fan Sports Network.
Tarleton State enters the contest with a 14-13 record overall and a 5-9 mark in conference play, tying them for fifth place in the WAC alongside Abilene Christian. The Texans have secured three wins in their last four games, including a recent 78-74 victory over Southern Utah and an earlier overtime win against Abilene Christian this week. At home, Tarleton holds a strong 10-4 record.
The Texans lead both the WAC and the nation in bench points per game (38.7) and turnovers forced per game (18.8). They also rank second nationally in steals per game (11.1), while leading the conference in free throw percentage (75.4%) and free throws made per game (18.1). Senior guard Cam McDowell leads the conference with an 87.8% free throw rate and is sixth in scoring at 13.9 points per game.
This meeting marks the twelfth all-time between Utah Tech and Tarleton State, with Tarleton leading the series 7-4. On the road at Stephenville, Utah Tech has won once out of four attempts but claimed victory during their last visit on January 31 by a score of 65-59 behind Noah Bolanga’s career-high performance.
Utah Tech’s most recent outing ended a six-game winning streak as they fell to UT Arlington, 63-50, recording their lowest point total of the season. Ethan Potter led with his sixth double-double of the year—16 points and 11 rebounds—while Noah Bolanga contributed eleven points.
Despite Thursday’s loss, Utah Tech continues to top several statistical categories within the WAC: they lead in three-point attempts per game (22.6), three-pointers made per game (7.7), and three-point percentage (34.3%). They are second in scoring offense at nearly 77 points per contest as well as other efficiency metrics like assist/turnover ratio and field goal percentage.
Individually, Ethan Potter leads or ranks highly across several categories including rebounds per game (7.9), total rebounds (212), field goal percentage (58.4%), total points scored (427), and field goals made (170). Trujillo leads in three-point attempts while ranking third for made threes; Bolanga stands second for threes attempted/made; Holt is among leaders for blocks; Davis ranks fourth for steals.
With sixteen wins this season—most since moving to Division I—the Trailblazers have demonstrated consistency by shooting above forty percent from the field and making at least six three-pointers in each win.
Looking ahead, this year marks Utah Tech’s final run through WAC competition before joining the Big Sky Conference beginning July 2026—a transition announced by university officials last June that will see fourteen sports compete under Big Sky starting with the 2026–27 season.
After facing Tarleton State, Utah Tech will host Abilene Christian on February 26 before traveling to Southern Utah on February 28.
