Dixie State (4-4, 0-1) vs. Texas Rio Grande Valley (7-3, 1-0)
UTRGV Fieldhouse, Edinburg, Texas; Saturday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Texas Rio Grande Valley goes for the season sweep over Dixie State after winning the previous matchup in Edinburg. The teams last played on Jan. 15, when the Vaqueros outshot Dixie State 45.1 percent to 34.6 percent and hit seven more 3-pointers en route to a 33-point victory.
TEAM LEADERSHIP: Sean Rhea is putting up 14.1 points and 5.4 rebounds to lead the way for the Vaqueros. Chris Freeman is also a top contributor, maintaining an average of 7.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. The Trailblazers are led by Cameron Gooden, who is averaging 12 points.GIFTED GOODEN: Gooden has connected on 37.5 percent of the 32 3-pointers he’s attempted and has made 6 of 18 over his last five games. He’s also made 65.3 percent of his free throws this season.
STREAK STATS: Dixie State has scored 64.7 points per game and allowed 93 over its three-game road losing streak.
ACCOUNTING FOR ASSISTS: The Vaqueros have recently used assists to create buckets more often than the Trailblazers. Texas Rio Grande Valley has 56 assists on 82 field goals (68.3 percent) across its previous three outings while Dixie State has assists on 43 of 64 field goals (67.2 percent) during its past three games.
DETERMINED DEFENSE: The stout Texas Rio Grande Valley defense has held opposing offenses to a field goal percentage of 38.6 percent, the 21st-lowest mark in Division I. Dixie State has allowed opponents to shoot 45.2 percent through eight games (ranking the Trailblazers 252nd).
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