The Hive Sports

By Connor Dee

The Utah Valley Wolverines have had a historic season. At 20-6 going into Saturday’s game, the Wolverines were determined to handle unfinished business. It can be argued that Utah Valley’s only blemish on the season is an 80-85 home loss against Seattle; their only home loss of the season to date. With a two-game conference lead going into Saturday, UVU was ready to settle the score in Seattle. With a 67-58 victory, Utah Valley got the revenge win they were looking for and maintained full control at the top of the conference.

The first half saw a defensive battle. It took a minute and a half for either team to make their first basket. At the 11:30 mark of the half, Tim Fuller threw a rocket of a pass to a cutting Trey Woodbury for an easy slam down the lane. UVU opened up a 3-point lead at 12-9. But Seattle hung tough and closed the half strong, ending on an 11-5 run the led 24-21 as the half time buzzer sounded.

Similar to how the first half started, Le’Tre Darthard got the Wolverines going to start the second with a three almost a minute into the half. On the ensuing possession, Darthard rejected the Redhawks and found a layup at the other end. With a 5-0 to start the second half, Utah Valley was not about to hand Seattle the season sweep.

For much of the second half, Utah Valley and Seattle saw a competitive and close game. No team gained more than a six-point lead for nearly sixteen minutes. With under two minutes to play in regulation, Justin Harmon threw down two straight dunks to give Utah Valley a seven-point lead. They would not be relinquishing the advantage this time.

An Aziz Bandaogo dunk and five made free throws split between Harmon and Woodbury allowed the Wolverines to hold onto victory at 67-58. Darthard led all scorers with 19 points, and Bandaogo did his job on the glass racking up 17 rebounds. Utah Valley combined for 11 team assists while the Redhawks of Seattle managed just four.

If you had any doubts about this Utah Valley team they should have been answered this Saturday. The Wolverines have left nothing on the table. They have found their identity in their defense. Utah Valley leads the nation in blocks per game and is sixth in rebounds per game. They have shooters galore and a big man they can turn to to get them points down low. Mark Madsen is on pace to lead this team to their best record in school history. It’ll all come down to the conference tournament, but the Wolverines should be the favorite to come out of the Western Athletic.