Texas State vs UTSA prediction: Texas State's second chances could bury UTSA's rebuilt Roadrunners
UTSA has been among the worst defensive rebounding teams in the country two seasons running, and Texas State has built its identity on the offensive glass.
- Texas State grinds inside and crashes the glass while UTSA lives on threes; if the Roadrunners' shots miss, the Bobcats keep getting second looks.
- UTSA's defensive rebounding against DJ Hall and Robert Fields, with Texas State hunting putbacks and paint touches all night.
- No line is posted yet; UTSA is 0-2 against the spread, failing as a 5-point favorite in a 70-68 win over VMI.
The glass decides it
UTSA brought back just 13.1% of last season's minutes. It is a roster rebuilt almost from scratch and run by an acting coach. Texas State has won the last two meetings in the I-35 Rivalry, and its clearest path to a third runs through the offensive glass.
Defensive rebound percentage is the share of an opponent's misses a team collects. UTSA sits at 50.8%, 362nd of 364, after two games. That isn't new: last season's Roadrunners ranked 361st. The roster changed almost entirely, and the problem stayed.
Texas State is built to exploit it. Last season the Bobcats ranked 69th in offensive rebound rate, grabbing 34.4% of their own misses. Their numbers this season are inflated by a 135-66 rout of Howard Payne, so last season's profile is the steadier guide. Every Bobcat miss that turns into a putback is a possession UTSA's thin margins can't absorb.
Threes against the paint
These teams want completely different shots. UTSA takes 49.2% of its field goal attempts from three, 54th nationally, but makes only 29.7% of them. Texas State went the other way last season: its 24.8% three-point attempt rate ranked 364th of 365.
That clash ties straight back to the rebounding. Long threes produce long rebounds, and UTSA's missed jumpers feed a Bobcat team that wants to run the floor and attack. At the other end, UTSA has allowed opponents to make 62.9% of their twos, 336th. That's a bad number to carry into a game against Robert Fields, who has made 83.3% of his shots after his first career start against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, and DJ Hall, who scored a game-high 18 in that win.
A rebuild under an acting coach
Austin Claunch was suspended Oct. 28 after his arrest on suspicion of DWI, and Nick Bowman has run the team as acting head coach. He inherited 14 newcomers, with Dorian Hayes the lone returner.
The early returns are mixed. UTSA lost by 21 at San José State, then needed an 8-0 run in the final two minutes to beat VMI, a team that finished 358th in adjusted net efficiency last season. Preston Turner and Demari Williams hit late threes to finish that comeback. KJ Tenner has steadied the point guard spot, averaging 4.5 assists in 33 minutes a night.
Texas State's turnover is gentler: four regulars are back, including Hall, Kaden Gumbs and Fields, plus five transfers. Paul Djobet, who shot 41.5% from three at Omaha last season, gives the Bobcats a perimeter option they lacked. Last season's final adjusted net ratings (points per 100 possessions, adjusted for opponents) put Texas State at -8.1 and UTSA at -19.4. The UTSA number describes a roster that is mostly gone, but nothing so far argues the gap has closed.
Free throws and the road
UTSA rarely gets to the line. Its free throw rate (free throw attempts per field goal attempt) is 19.2%, 350th, and it has made just 60.0% of the free throws it does take. A team that wins close games needs those points, and UTSA's only win came by two.
The Bobcats carry one real question: they haven't left home yet. Texas State went 16-1 at Strahan Arena last season and has stretched its home streak to 10 straight, but both of the last two rivalry wins, including an 80-69 decision last November, came in San Marcos. This time the I-35 trip runs the other way, into UTSA's Convocation Center, and it opens Texas State's first Pac-12 season on the road. No Texas State injuries had been reported as of Nov. 7.
Key players
- DJ Hall (Texas State): Hall averaged 15.6 points and 7.6 rebounds last season and is carrying a 26.2% usage rate this season.
- Paul Djobet (Texas State): Djobet is averaging 14.5 points on a 67.6% effective field goal percentage through two games.
- Robert Fields (Texas State): Fields has made 83.3% of his field goals while averaging 13.5 points in two starts.
- KJ Tenner (UTSA): Tenner leads the Roadrunners at 4.5 assists per game with a 130.3 offensive rating.
- Preston Turner (UTSA): Turner shot 44.8% from three last season but is hitting 33.3% on 18 attempts so far.
- Shey Eberwein (UTSA): Eberwein is averaging 11.0 points off the bench with a 59.4% effective field goal percentage.
Numbers that matter
| UTSA defensive rebound % | 50.8% | Ranked 362nd of 364, a weakness that also showed up last season with a different roster. |
|---|---|---|
| UTSA returning minutes | 13.1% | Almost the entire rotation is new, with Dorian Hayes the lone returner. |
| UTSA 3-point attempt rate | 49.2% | The Roadrunners lean on threes while making only 29.7% of them. |
| UTSA free throw rate | 19.2% | Ranked 350th, leaving UTSA few easy points in a close game. |
| Texas State adjusted net, last season | -8.1 | Ranked 255th last season, well ahead of UTSA's -19.4. |
Texas State vs UTSA: quick answers
When is Texas State vs UTSA?
Sunday, November 15, 2026 at 8:00 PM ET.