By: Joe Oliver
January 18, 2025 – Utah Valley’s last loss was an away game on December 14th to Jacksonville State. After that, the Wolverines defeated both Idaho State and Weber State on the road. They followed up those performances by dropping 119 at home against Bethesda University; winning by 60-points!
Since then, UVU has been in 1st place in the Western Athletic Conference. They have gone undefeated (4-0) in conference play. Leading up to this in-state matchup, Utah Tech, comes in at 5th place in the WAC with a 2-1 conference record.
The Wolverines walking into the UCCU Center on Saturday with 7 consecutive wins. However, early on it became clear this wasn’t going to be a walk in the park. Tech matched UVU point for point with the lead changing hands several times. The matchup seemed to be fairly even and the first half finished with Tech on top 42 – 40.
Coming out of halftime, both teams continued exchanging buckets. Then, UVU went on a 12-4 run, jumpstarted by Kylin Green and Jackson Holcombe with back-to-back layups and an Ethan Potter dunk!
Tanner Toolson led the Wolverines with 18 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Dominick Nelson had 15 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist. Trevan Leonhardt added 14 points, 2 rebounds, and 4 assists to help Utah Valley remain undefeated at home.
Utah Valley topped Utah Tech 96-80. They remain in first place in the WAC and 1 of only 22 undefeated teams in conference play in college basketball. It was the 8th straight win for the Wolverines.
Noa Gonsalves led the Trailblazers with 18 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, and in two steals. Utah Tech’s Beon Riley added 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Hakim Byrd finished with 14 points, 2 boards, and 5 assists.
Utah Tech shot just over 58% from the field on 34/58 shooting. UVU shot 55% on 32/58 field goal attempts. The difference was rebounding. UVU grabbed 34 boards to Tech’s 18, including taking a 14 – to – 4 offensive board advantage.
Utah Valley’s next game is Thursday against Cal Baptist on the road, and Utah Tech hosts Grand Canyon on Saturday. – Photos by: Joe Oliver
The Hive Sports 
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