The Wildcats will have 12 days off ahead of their home contest against Utah Tech, courtesy of their midseason bye and a mix of West Texas winter storms that postponed their game against Tarleton State this past week.

“We were ready to play Saturday, we were ready to play today,” head coach Brette Tanner said. “Now we’ve got to shift gears.”

The elongated bye arguably came at the perfect time for the Wildcats, as the team was three games into a conference losing skid, which now situates them at 10-9 overall, 2-4 in conference and sixth place in Western Athletic Conference standings.

Coach Tanner said this time has served as an opportunity to get things back in order for the Cats.

“I thought the bye week came at a good time,” Tanner said. “We’ve got a lot done, a lot of practice time, and so kind of treating this like the beginning of the year, where you’re hungry, ready to play somebody else.”

This Thursday will serve as a rematch against a Trailblazers team that beat the Wildcats earlier this year, 79-64, on the Wildcats’ home turf. The game will serve as the second of three in the series, with the Wildcats later meeting Utah Tech at the end of February in Utah.

Despite the loss, in the last game between these two squads, Rich Smith, senior guard from the Bronx, set a career high in a Wildcat uniform with 22 points. The big night for Smith was not enough due to a 22-0 first-half run that solidified the Wildcats’ fate.

“It’s a team that beat us,” Tanner said. “I don’t have to do a whole lot to motivate our guys. We’ve been approaching this like it’s a series. Nothing’s gained, nothing’s lost at this point. We have an opportunity on Thursday now to even the series.”

The Trailblazers are coming off a 102-91 win over rival Southern Utah, in which six players finished in double figures, one of whom was ACU’s kryptonite.

In the win against ACU, Chance Trujillo, redshirt sophomore guard from Kaysville, Utah, had a season-high 19 points for Utah Tech, in a game that served as the Trailblazers’ only ever win over ACU.

“The defense led to good offense,” Utah Tech head coach Jon Judkins said after the win against ACU. “Chance had a great night shooting the ball. I was really happy with our defense and our sharing of the ball.”

Barring any other unexpected Big Country weather changes, the game will tip off Thursday at 6 p.m.

Tanner said the Wildcats have practiced hard during the downtime but will need the fans this week to bounce back against Utah Tech.

“We need butts in seats,” Tanner said. “If the students can do that, it’s worth 10 points.”