Who | Utah Tech (10-19, 6-12 WAC) at UTRGV (6-23/2-16 WAC)
When | Thursday, March 7 / 5:30 p.m. (MT)
Where | UTRGV Fieldhouse (2,500) / Edinburg, Texas
Broadcast | ESPN+ / The Fan Sports Network 99.5 FM
Live Stats | at UTRGV
Social Media | Instagram + Twitter (X) + #UniteTheFamily / #IntoTheStorm
 

Utah Tech vs. UTRGV
        Utah Tech is 4-2 all-time vs. UTRGV and has won four-straight overall in the series, including an 88-81 road decision in Edinburg last season (2/23/23). The Trailblazers also claimed an 81-64 home victory this past Feb. 1, which moved the team to 3-0 against UTRGV inside the Burns Arena. 

Scouting the Vaqueros
        UTRGV begins the final week of the 2023-24 regular season looking to halt a 12-game slide, which includes a pair of lopsided road losses at WAC-leading Grand Canyon (L, 43-72) and at California Baptist (52-88) last week.
        Five of the Vaqueros six wins have come at home, including their last two victories overall vs. Seattle U (81-80 OT; 1/11) and Utah Valley (76-68; 1/13) nearly two months ago.
        UTRGV features a well-balanced scoring attack with five players scoring in double figures, led by junior guard Elijah Elliott (6-1) at 16.0 ppg on 35.9 percent shooting. Elliott also leads the team in assists (2.8 apg) and steals (1.6 spg) and has hit 34 3-pointers on the season.

Last Time Out
        Utah Tech dropped its fifth-straight game last Saturday night when the Trailblazers closed their 2023-24 home slate with an 86-79 loss to Abilene Christian.

And Down the Stretch We Come
        With two games left in the 2023-24 regular season, Utah Tech finds itself in a three-team battle for the final two spots in the upcoming WAC Tournament later this month. 
        Currently the Utah Tech (6-12) is on the outside looking in as the team is two games back of both CBU (8-10) and Stephen F. Austin (8-10), which the Trailblazers play this Saturday afternoon. 
        So it comes down to this, the Trailblazers need to win their final two games and hope that either or both CBU and SFA lose out, which would leave all three teams tied at 8-12.   
        Utah Tech will then clinch a WAC tourney berth by virtue of posting season sweeps vs. both CBU and SFA. 

Life of Riley
        After missing the majority of January due to injury, junior guard Beon Riley is averaging nearly 11 points and seven rebounds in his last six games, which includes team-highs of 16 points and eight boards in his first game back in the home win over Southern Utah (2/8).
        The junior guard returned to the starting lineup two days later vs. CBU (2/10) and responded with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting with four boards in 28 minutes vs. CBU before fouling out.
        Riley is coming off his second double-double of the season in last Saturday's loss to ACU, against which he tallied 15 points and a game-high 10 rebounds along with four assists. Six of Riley's 10 boards came on the offensive glass, which led to eight second-chance points for the junior.

Searles Continues Strong Play
        Junior forward Jaylen Searles has scored in double figures in seven of his last nine games, highlighted by a career-high 33 points on 12-of-16 from the floor and 8-of-9 at the foul line in Utah Tech's home win over CBU (2/10).
        He also pulled down a game-high eight boards, and had four assists and picked off a career-high four steals, which helped him earn WAC Player of the Week honors (2/12). 
        Searles' 33-point day tied for the fourth-most points scored in a game by a Utah Tech player in the program's four-year era. 
        In addition, his 33 points were also the second-most scored by a Utah Tech player in the program's NCAA Division I era, second only to former point guard Cameron Gooden's school record 35 points in his final game in the Trailblazers' WAC Tournament quarterfinal loss to SUU last season (3/9/23).
        Even though Searles, who also tallied 14 points at UT Arlington (2/24), was limited to five points in last Saturday's loss to ACU, he did stuff the stat sheet with nine rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block in 27 minutes off the bench. 

Release-Rotation-Splash
        Junior guard Noa Gonsalves poured in a season-high tying 21 points vs. ACU last Saturday night, this after he went for 16 points two  nights earlier vs. Tarleton State.
        Gonsalves, who drained four 3-pointers vs. ACU, has knocked down 20 3-pointers over his last nine games overall, which has vaulted him into second place on Utah Tech's single season list (62). 
        In fact, the junior guard needs only six more 3-pointers to break Utah Tech's single season 3FGM record currently held by former Blazer guard Brandon Simister (67; 2017-18).
        In addition, Gonsalves now stands 26 made trifectas away from passing Simister (166; 2012-18) to become the program's all-time leader. 
        Gonsalves became the program's single-season 3FGA leader (161) after he launched a career-high 12 3-point shots last Saturday night, which also tied him for the second-most for a single game in program history.  
        Gonsalves has hit three or more trifectas 10 times this season, highlighted by a single-game school record seven 3-pointers in the Blazers' home overtime victory over Florida International (12/30). He followed that up with four treys vs. Grand Canyon (1/6) and five more in the Stephen F. Austin home win (1/11).
        Gonsalves, who is currently second in the WAC in made threes, also became just the second player in the program's NCAA era to hit 50 or more 3-pointers twice in one season. Former guard Tom Whitehead was the first to do so with 56 in 2009-10, and 60 more one year later. 
        In addition, Gonsalves has been near-automatic at the charity stripe, leading the team with an even 80.0 percent clip (44-of-55) at the line, including a career-best 9-of-10 effort vs. UT Arlington back on Feb. 3. 

Double Your Pleasure
        Junior forward Tanner Christensen just missed seventh double-double after he went for 15 points and seven boards vs ACU last Saturday night.
        Christensen notched double-double No. 6 of the season with a game-high 18 points and team-high 10 rebounds at GCU on Feb. 15. In fact, Christensen was five assists shy of a triple-double as he dished out a team-best five helpers.
        For Christensen, who racked up four double-doubles in his Blazer debut season last year, it was the 11th double-double of his collegiate career, which included one he recorded while at Idaho during the 2021-22 season.
        Christensen now has 12 double-digit rebound games in his near two years at Utah Tech and 17 overall during his collegiate career. He (421 rebs.) also became the ninth Trailblazer in program history to surpass 400 career rebounds, and including his rebounding numbers during his time at Idaho (2020-22; 273 rebs), he is six caroms away from 700 career rebounds overall.

Block Party
        Sophomore forward Hamed Olayinka and Christensen have been jockeying back-and-forth for the team lead in blocked shots this season.
        Entering Thursday's game vs. UTRGV, the duo finds themselves ranked third (Olayinka 50 - t-57th in NCAA) and fourth (Christensen 47 - t-67th in NCAA) in the WAC in blocks, respectively. 
        Olayinka has led or co-led the Blazers in blocks 18 times this season overall, including three more blocks vs. Tarleton State last Thursday night, while Christensen is three games back at 15 games. 
        Christensen is currently third all-time in program history in career blocks (72 in 61 games), while Olayinka (50 in 29 games) has already moved into sixth place on the career list. 
        Meanwhile as a team, Utah Tech is t-51st in the NCAA Division I ranks at 4.4 bpg. 

Hip-Hip-Turay
        Junior guard Unisa Turay was stellar off the bench vs. Tarleton State last Thursday night, going off for 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting with a pair of treys and a co-game high five assists.
        Turay then followed that up with a stat-sheet stuffing nine points, five assists, two rebounds, two steals and his first block of the season vs. ACU on Saturday night. 

Bringing the Rain
        Freshman Tennessee Rainwater made his first collegiate start vs. Tarleton State last Thursday and responded with 11 points on 5-of-10 from the floor with four boards and two steals in a career-high 26 minutes. 
        Rainwater's 11 points was one off his career-best of 12 he scored off the bench in the Blazers' home win over UTRGV (2/1).
        The freshman also got the starting nod last Saturday vs. ACU and tallied eight points, four boards and an assist in 21-plus minutes of action.

What's Next
        Utah Tech will put a bow on the 2023-24 regular season this Saturday afternoon with a road date at Stephen F. Austin. Tip-off inside the William R. Johnson Coliseum in Nacogdoches is set for 2 p.m. (CT).