Feb. 6, 2010
Box Score
OREM, Utah - Four Utah Valley players scored in double figures in leading the Wolverines to their first Great West Conference win of the year Saturday with an 81-69 victory over Houston Baptist.
With the win, the Wolverines snap a four-game losing streak while improving to 5-19 overall and 1-6 in league play.
"It's not easy to battle each night and not be successful. In many ways this victory shows their character and willingness to work together and play hard," UVU head coach Cathy Nixon said. "There's a lot for us to play for. We've played everyone in conference now and we're looking to gain some momentum and start playing well as we get closer to the conference tournament."
Jenna Johnson led all UVU scorers with 20 points and Erika Newbold added 16 points and eight rebounds, while Julie Smith and Asumi Nakayama added 13 and 10 points, respectively. Kaycee Mansfield posted a career-high 11 rebounds to go along with her nine points, and Nakayama tallied a game-high seven assists.
"I'm really pleased with our overall team effort. When the game was in the balance it was a combination of several people contributing," Nixon said.
Johnson paced with the Wolverines with 19 first-half points by connecting on 6-of-11 field goals, including 3-of-6 from the three-point line and 4-of-4 from the foul line.
Four minutes into the game, the Wolverines trailed 9-2, but they went on a 12-2 run over the next three minutes to take a brief 14-13 lead with 12:52 left in the half.
HBU's Taniqua Hollis buried a three-pointer to give the Huskies the 18-16 lead, but a three-pointer by Johnson gave the Wolverines the lead for good at 21-18.
Leading by six, Utah Valley, which committed just nine turnovers in the first half, went on a 14-0 run to end the half to lead 42-24 at the break.
The Wolverines shot 51.6 percent from the field in the half, while holding HBU to just 31.3 percent from the field.
Utah Valley led by as many as 25 points in the contest with the last coming with 10:25 left on two foul shots by Nakayama.
The Wolverines shot 49.1 percent from the field, while HBU shot 36.5 percent. UVU outrebounded the Huskies 48-28.
The Wolverines are back in action Feb. 13 when they to Edinburg, Texas, for a Great West Conference encounter with Texas-Pan American.
