(Abilene, Texas - Jan. 29, 2026) - The Trailblazers started their Texas road trip on Thursday night defeating Abilene Christian, 76-70 in Moody Coliseum for head coach
Jon Judkins' 350th career win at Utah Tech.
Utah Tech (12-11, 5-4 WAC), who led the entire game, was paced by four Trailblazers in double figures with a team-leading 16 points by senior forward
Ethan Potter and 13 from
Noah Bolanga who drilled 4-of-6 from three-point range.
Jusaun Holt tallied 12 points and
Chance Trujillo came off the bench to notch 10 points, four rebounds & four assists.
The Trailblazers shot 49 percent (24-49) from the field, 47.1 percent (8-17) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (20-30) from the free throw line.
Abilene Christian (10-10, 2-5 WAC) was led 18 points from Yaniel Rivera and added 14 points by Cbo Newton & 12 points and team-leading eight rebounds off the bench by Bradyn Hubbard.
How It Happened
The Trailblazers raced out to a quick 8-0 lead thanks to a pair of three-pointers by Bolanga and layup from Potter.
A turnaround layup by Potter in the lane pushed UT ahead, 13-7 and a dunk by Potter boosted the Trailblazers lead back to eight at 20-12.
A 10-6 run for the Wildcats brought ACU back within four at 26-22 and a fast break layup by Davis kept UT in the lead at 31-26.
ACU responded with a three-pointer by Rivera to cut UT's lead down to two, but an 11-0 run for the Trailblazers put them ahead, 42-29 and led by 11 at the half.
The Wildcats came out in the second half with newfound life getting started with a 10-2 run to cut the Trailblazers' lead down to three (44-41) after the opening three minutes.
A triple by Holt halted ACU's momentum and got a 10-0 run for the Trailblazers started to give UT a 54-41 lead.
As they did all game, the Wildcats again answered back going on a 9-0 run while the Trailblazers went ice cold from the field going scoreless for nearly six minutes.
With ACU closing the UT lead to 54-50 with 8:15 remaining, the Trailblazers took advantage of a technical foul by the Wildcats to start another 10-0 run of their own to extend their lead to 64-50. With just over four minutes to play, it was the Trailblazers' largest lead of the contest.
After ACU trimmed the Trailblazers' lead down to five (73-68) with 16 second remaining, Trujillo knocked down a pair of free throws with eight seconds left to make it a three-possession contest and seal the win over the Wildcats.
Numbers to Know
- It was the second straight win for the Trailblazers over the Wildcats in Moody Coliseum this season.
- It was the head coach Jon Judkins' 350th career win at Utah Tech. It was his 65th win in the Division I era to go along with 265 in the Division II era & 20 while in the junior college ranks.
- All eight Trailblazers who played scored at least five points in the contest.
- The Trailblazers led the Wildcats in bench points (23-20), free throws made (20-8) & rebounds (35-31).
- It was the 14th time this season Potter has tied or led the Trailblazers in scoring and it was his 16th time leading or sharing the lead in rebounds.
- Davis swiped a season-best five steals and it was the first time since Dec. 22, 2022 a Trailblazer (Frank Staine) has had five steals in a contest.
Up Next
The Trailblazers close out the road trip to Texas on Saturday afternoon traveling to Tarleton State (11-10, 2-6 WAC) for a 3 p.m. MT contest at the EECU Center.
