2025–26 UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball team
American college basketball season
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The 2025–26 UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball team represented the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley during the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Vaqueros, led by second-year head coach Kahil Fennell, played their home games at UTRGV Fieldhouse in Edinburg, Texas as members of the Southland Conference.
ConferenceSouthland Conference
Record19–14 (14–8 Southland)
Headcoach
- Kahil Fennell (2nd season)
Associate headcoachBrock Erickson
| 2025–26 UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball | |
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| Conference | Southland Conference |
| Record | 19–14 (14–8 Southland) |
| Head coach |
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| Associate head coach | Brock Erickson |
| Assistant coaches |
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| Home arena | UTRGV Fieldhouse |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stephen F. Austin | 20 | – | 2 | .909 | 28 | – | 6 | .824 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| McNeese † | 19 | – | 3 | .864 | 28 | – | 6 | .824 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UT Rio Grande Valley | 14 | – | 8 | .636 | 19 | – | 14 | .576 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | 13 | – | 9 | .591 | 18 | – | 15 | .545 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| New Orleans | 12 | – | 10 | .545 | 15 | – | 18 | .455 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nicholls | 12 | – | 10 | .545 | 14 | – | 19 | .424 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern State | 8 | – | 14 | .364 | 10 | – | 22 | .313 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Houston Christian | 8 | – | 14 | .364 | 12 | – | 20 | .375 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Incarnate Word | 7 | – | 15 | .318 | 12 | – | 19 | .387 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lamar | 7 | – | 15 | .318 | 12 | – | 19 | .387 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| East Texas A&M | 6 | – | 16 | .273 | 11 | – | 21 | .344 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Southeastern Louisiana | 6 | – | 16 | .273 | 9 | – | 22 | .290 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † 2026 Southland tournament winner | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Previous season
The Vaqueros finished the 2024–25 season 16–15, 8–12 in Southland Conference play, to finish in ninth place.[1] They failed to qualify for the Southland Conference tournament, as only the top eight teams make it.[2]
Roster
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Schedule and results
| Date time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular season | |||||||||||
| November 3, 2025* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at Baylor | L 81–96 | 0–1 |
16 – McGhee III | 9 – McGhee III | 4 – Wright | Foster Pavilion (6,422) Waco, TX | ||||
| November 8, 2025* 7:30 pm, ESPN+ |
at Southern Utah | W 95–72 | 1–1 |
30 – McGhee III | 10 – McGhee III | 6 – Cotton | America First Event Center (1,489) Cedar City, UT | ||||
| November 11, 2025* 8:00 pm, MWN |
at Boise State | L 65–85 | 1–2 |
12 – Cotton | 4 – Christensen | 4 – Blake | ExtraMile Arena (8,999) Boise, ID | ||||
| November 17, 2025* 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Southwestern Adventist | W 110−53 | 2−2 |
18 – Cotton | 10 – Christensen | 5 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (2,019) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| November 22, 2025* 4:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at Missouri State Illinois Showcase |
L 67−74 | 2−3 |
13 – Cotton | 9 – McGhee III | 4 – Cotton | Great Southern Bank Arena (1,547) Springfield, MO | ||||
| November 24, 2025* 7:00 pm, BTN |
at No. 13 Illinois Illinois Showcase |
L 73–87 | 2–4 |
21 – Dickson | 5 – Tied | 3 – Wright | State Farm Center (11,853) Champaign, IL | ||||
| December 3, 2025 6:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at Stephen F. Austin | L 60–73 | 2–5 (0–1) |
15 – Washington | 8 – Tied | 3 – Cotton | William R. Johnson Coliseum (1,513) Nacogdoches, TX | ||||
| December 7, 2025* 1:00 pm, ESPN+ |
Austin Peay | W 63–50 | 3–5 |
22 – Cotton | 10 – Cotton | 4 – Wright | UTRGV Fieldhouse (930) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| December 11, 2025* 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
UT Arlington | L 50–57 | 3–6 |
10 – McGhee | 6 – Tied | 3 – Tied | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,213) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| December 16, 2025 6:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at Lamar | W 83–72 | 4–6 (1–1) |
18 – Tied | 9 – Cotton | 4 – Tied | Neches Arena (1,054) Beaumont, TX | ||||
| December 20, 2025* 2:00 pm, ESPN+ |
Biblical Studies | W 109–51 | 5–6 |
15 – McGhee III | 12 – Christensen | 8 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (520) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| December 29, 2025 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
New Orleans | L 69−85 | 5−7 (1−2) |
24 – Cotton | 8 – Cotton | 4 – Cotton | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,010) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| December 31, 2025 4:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Nicholls | L 69–71 | 5–8 (1–3) |
17 – Washington | 9 – Gomez | 6 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (613) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| January 3, 2026 4:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Texas A&M–Corpus Christi South Texas Showdown |
L 59–63 | 5–9 (1–4) |
15 – Washington | 8 – McGhee III | 7 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,173) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| January 5, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Incarnate Word | W 80–67 | 6–9 (2–4) |
29 – Brankovic | 9 – Tied | 5 – Tied | UTRGV Fieldhouse (711) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| January 10, 2026 5:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at East Texas A&M | L 69–77 | 6–10 (2–5) |
16 – Brankovic | 7 – Brankovic | 4 – Tied | The Field House (372) Commerce, TX | ||||
| January 12, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
at Northwestern State | L 63–64 | 6–11 (2–6) |
19 – Brankovic | 6 – McGhee III | 7 – Washington | Prather Coliseum (810) Natchitoches, LA | ||||
| January 17, 2026 4:30 pm, ESPN+ |
McNeese | W 79–76 | 7–11 (3–6) |
17 – McGhee III | 7 – McGhee III | 7 – Cotton | UTRGV Fieldhouse (2,119) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| January 19, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Southeastern Louisiana | W 68–65 | 8–11 (4–6) |
19 – McGhee III | 11 – McGhee III | 6 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (937) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| January 24, 2026 3:30 pm, ESPN+ |
at Houston Christian | W 68–51 | 9–11 (5–6) |
17 – McGhee III | 6 – McGhee III | 6 – Washington | Sharp Gymnasium (798) Houston, TX | ||||
| January 26, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi South Texas Showdown |
W 64–55 | 10–11 (6–6) |
19 – Gomez | 7 – Gomez | 2 – Tied | Hilliard Center (1,571) Corpus Christi, TX | ||||
| January 31, 2026 4:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at Incarnate Word | W 106–93 | 11–11 (7–6) |
21 – Cotton | 5 – Brankovic | 6 – Washington | McDermott Center (234) San Antonio, TX | ||||
| February 2, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Houston Christian | W 74–57 | 12–11 (8–6) |
17 – Brankovic | 6 – Tied | 6 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,357) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| February 7, 2026 5:00 pm, ESPN+ |
at New Orleans | W 95–76 | 13–11 (9–6) |
24 – Brankovic | 7 – McGhee III | 5 – Washington | Lakefront Arena (401) New Orleans, LA | ||||
| February 9, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
at Nicholls | W 92–72 | 14–11 (10–6) |
26 – Washington | 7 – Cotton | 6 – Washington | Stopher Gymnasium (521) Thibodaux, LA | ||||
| February 14, 2026 4:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Stephen F. Austin | L 57–66 | 14–12 (10–7) |
15 – Cotton | 8 – McGhee III | 3 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,223) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| February 16, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Lamar | W 70–65 | 15–12 (11–7) |
19 – Brankovic | 7 – Cotton | 8 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,719) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| February 21, 2026 3:30 pm, ESPN+ |
at Southeastern Louisiana | W 96–75 | 16–12 (12–7) |
18 – Tied | 7 – Blake | 4 – Tied | Pride Roofing University Center (422) Hammond, LA | ||||
| February 23, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
at McNeese | L 68–75 | 16–13 (12–8) |
15 – Brankovic | 8 – Cotton | 5 – Washington | Townsley Law Arena (2,872) Lake Charles, LA | ||||
| February 28, 2026 4:30 pm, ESPN+ |
East Texas A&M | W 63–55 | 17–13 (13–8) |
14 – Gomez | 9 – Brankovic | 4 – Tied | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,723) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| March 2, 2026 6:30 pm, ESPN+ |
Northwestern State | W 74–62 | 18–13 (14–8) |
21 – Cotton | 7 – Cotton | 8 – Washington | UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,717) Edinburg, TX | ||||
| Southland tournament | |||||||||||
| March 9, 2026 7:30 pm, ESPN+ |
(3) | vs. (6) Nicholls Quarterfinals |
W 86–68 | 19–13 |
21 – Brankovic | 6 – Agwa | 5 – Tied | Townsley Law Arena Lake Charles, LA | |||
| March 10, 2026 8:30 pm, ESPN+ |
(3) | at (2) McNeese Semifinals |
L 80–84 3OT | 19–14 |
20 – Cotton | 13 – Cotton | 4 – Brankovic | Townsley Law Arena (4,481) Lake Charles, LA | |||