Utah Valley (8-8, 0-1) vs. Chicago State (4-14, 0-2) GAME INFORMATION
Live Video: ESPN3 (Mychal Clanton/Matt Peterson)
Radio: ESPN 960 AM (Jim McCulloch/Holton Hunsaker)
Radio Webcast: espn960sports.com
Live Stats Link: UVU StatBroadcast
 

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OPENING TIP
Utah Valley will play its first WAC home games of the season this week as the team welcomes Chicago State and UMKC to the UCCU Center. The Wolverines open the week against league foe Chicago State on Thursday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. (MST).

The Wolverines return to the UCCU Center this week where the team holds an impressive 5-1 record this season. UVU's only loss at home this season is an 80-79 overtime loss to in-state rival Utah State on Dec. 10. UVU holds an all-time 148-41 record (.783).

Utah Valley opened WAC play with an 82-72 setback at Grand Canyon on Saturday night. Isaac Neilson and Brandon Randolph each recorded double-doubles in the loss at GCU. Neilson tallied 14 points with a career-high 16 rebounds while Randolph registered 18 points with a career-high 10 boards. Kenneth Ogbe scored a team-high 20 points against the Antelopes, while Conner Toolson helped with 11.

Toolson leads the Wolverines in scoring at 14.7 points per game. Junior forward Isaac Neislon ranks second on the team in scoring at 12.7 points a contest and leads the team on the boards, pulling down 9.9 rebounds a game. Brandon Randolph leads the team in assists, averaging 5.1 helpers a game.

Neilson ranks in the top-25 nationally in both rebounds per game and offensive boards per game. The junior forward ranks 25th in the country with 158  total rebounds. He also ranks 15th nationally on the offensive glass at 3.63 offensive boards a game.

Utah Valley is the fifth fastest team in the nation according to KenPom.com. The Wolverines averaged 77.3 possessions per game, ranking fifth behind The Citadel (83.8), Savannah State (81.8), Marshall (78.4), and BYU (77.7). UVU sits just ahead of Wyoming (76.3), Incarnate Word (76.2), Central Michigan (75.9) and UCLA (75.8). UVU averages 14.3 seconds per possession which ranks the team ninth in average possession length.

BROADCAST INFORMATION - FIRST-EVER ESPN3 BROADCAST FROM UCCU CENTER
Thursday's game against Chicago State will be video streamed live on ESPN3 with Mychal Clanton and Matt Peterson on the call. It will mark the first time in UCCU Center history that the ESPN network has broadcast a game from the arena. The game will also be broadcast live on ESPN 960 AM radio with Jim McCulloch and Holton Hunsaker handling the play-by-play and color duties. A live stream of the radio broadcast will be available through ESPN960sports.com and also through the ESPN 960 app, which is available for both iPhone and Android.

ABOUT CHICAGO STATE
Chicago State heads into Thursday's matchup against Utah Valley with a 4-14 overall record. The team has dropped five straight dating back to an 83-65 loss to Troy on Dec. 23. The team's last win was a 74-65 victory over Southeast Missouri on Dec. 22. The Cougars hold a 1-11 record on the road this season. Chicago State opened WAC play at home last week with a pair of losses to UTRGV and New Mexico State. The Cougars fell 83-74 to UTRGV before falling 78-62 to NM State. Sophomore guard Fred Sims Jr. leads the team in scoring at 18.2 points per game and fronts the team with 43 three-point field goals. Senior guard/forward Trayvon Palmer also averages double figures at 15.0 points a contest and leads the team on the boards, pulling down 9.5 rebounds a game.

SERIES HISTORY VS. CHICAGO STATE
Utah Valley and Chicago State meet on the basketball hardwood for the 19th time on Thursday night. UVU holds an all-time 14-4 advantage over the Cougars. Utah Valley has won six of the last seven matchups between the two teams, including a clean sweep over the Cougars last season. Utah Valley defeated CSU 82-76 at Chicago State before picking up a 74-72 win at home over the Cougars last season.

LAST MEETING VS. CHICAGO STATE (Feb. 18, 2016)
Marcel Davis drove into the paint and connected on a game winning shot with one second remaining to lead the Utah Valley University men's basketball team a 74-72 win over Chicago State on Feb. 18, 2016 at the UCCU Center.

Trailing by three points, 72-69, with 1:33 to play, Chicago State's Fred Simms Jr. made a layup, was fouled, and connected on the free throw to tie the game 72-72 with 1:07 remaining. Each team missed a three on its next possession before Davis pulled down a rebound with 30 seconds to play. The senior guard then played for the final shot, driving into the lane and knocking down a shot with one second remaining to secure the UVU victory.
 
Davis toyed with a triple-double, tallying 12 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. He also recorded a pair of steals in 37 minutes of action.
 
Konner Frey led the Wolverines with 14 points, connecting on 4-of-10 shots from the field. He was just one rebound shy of his fourth double-double of the season with nine boards. Ivory Young scored 12 points on a 4-of-6 clip from beyond the arc.  Jaden Jackson was also in double figures with 11 points as he connected on four shots from the floor, including three shots from long range.

Sims Jr. led Chicago State with a game-high 18 points. Clemmye Owens V and Anthony Eaves were also in double figures for CSU with 17 and 14 points, respectively.
 
Utah Valley connected on 42.9 percent (24-of-56) of its shots from the field, including a 35.1 percent (13-of-37) mark from three-point range. UVU's 13 threes is the sixth most ever recorded in a single game in team history, while the 37 attempted three-point field goals is the most ever attempted in a single game in UVU history.

HOME SWEET HOME
Utah Valley holds an all-time 148-41 (78.3 percent) record in 12 seasons at the UCCU Center. The Wolverines are averaging nearly 12 wins a season at the UCCU Center. UVU is an impressive 5-1 at home this season. The team's lone setback at home this season is an 80-79 overtime loss to in-state rival Utah State on Dec. 10.

THESE GUYS ARE SMART - TEAM HOLDS IMPRESSIVE 3.49 TEAM GPA
Utah Valley might be the only team in the country with two juniors that are entering their first year in a post graduate MBA program. Zach Nelson and Kenneth Ogbe started their first year in the MBA program at UVU this year. Under head coach Mark Pope, Utah Valley basketball players hold a perfect pass-fail rate. Every single player under his guidance has passed each and every class taken over the past two seasons. This year's team holds an impressive 3.49 team grade point average.

DOUBLE DOWN
With a 14-point, 16-rebound double-double at Grand Canyon on Saturday night, Utah Valley junior forward Isaac Neilson now holds six double-doubles this season. The six double doubles are the third-most in the WAC this year and  are the seventh-most in the country this season. His six double-doubles ranks Neilson tied for 46th nationally in the category.

FAST AND THE FURIOUS
As of Jan. 10, KenPom.com has Utah Valley ranked as the fifth fastest team in the nation at 77.3 possessions per 40 minutes. The Citadel (83.8) is ranked as the No. 1 tempo team in the nation, followed by Savannah State (81.8), Marshall (78.4), and BYU (77.7). UVU is fifth, followed by Wyoming (76.3), Incarnate Word (76.2), Central Michigan (75.9) and UCLA (75.8). The Wolverines rank ninth in average possession length at 14.3 seconds a possession.

LOVING THE LONG BALL
Utah Valley has knocked down 150 three-pointers through 16 games this season. At that pace, Utah Valley is set to connect on more than 275 shots from beyond the arc this season. The team is on track to break the UVU single season record of 256 made threes set by last year's team. UVU has already broken the all-time UVU single game record for threes made with 18 at BYU. The team also broke the single game UVU record for threes attempted as the Wolverines put up a school-record 43 three-point attempts in a 86-52 win over Benedictine on Nov. 19, surpassing the previous record of 37 set last season against Chicago State (2/18/2016). Utah Valley ranks 36th in the nation in threes per game, averaging 9.4 threes a contest.

UTAH VALLEY FALLS IN WAC OPENER AT GRAND CANYON, 82-72
Despite a pair of double-double performances from Brandon Randolph and Isaac Neilson, Utah Valley couldn't overcome a big second half run by Grand Canyon in an 82-72 setback to the Antelopes on Jan. 7 in the team's WAC opener at GCU Arena.
 
Trailing by eight points, 17-9, with 11:59 to play in the first half, Utah Valley went on a 13-0 run over the next five minutes to take its largest lead of the game, 22-17, with 6:56 remaining in the half. The two teams then played through four ties and a pair of lead changes before Grand Canyon took a 38-35 advantage into the break.
 
A Neilson dunk at the 15:57 mark of the second half cut the GCU lead to just two points, 43-41. Grand Canyon responded with a 16-2 run to take a 59-43 advantage with 11:58 remaining. The Wolverines battled back to get as close as eight points, 61-53, with 8:31 to play, but couldn't get any closer as the Antelopes built their lead back up to as many as 19 points at the four minute mark and UVU ran out of time to recover as Grand Canyon secured the win.
 
Randolph registered his second double-double of the season with 18 points and a career-high 10 rebounds. The junior guard also dished out a team-high six assists. Randolph knocked down 6-of-10 shots from the field and went a perfect 6-for-6 at the free throw line. Neilson tallied his sixth double-double of the season with 14 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. Neilson connected on 6-of-10 shots on the night, including a shot from long range.
 
Kenneth Ogbe led Utah Valley with a team-high 20 points, his third 20-plus point game of the season. The junior guard knocked down 8-of-16 shots from the field, including a pair of shots from long range. He also went 2-for-3 at the charity stripe and pulled down three rebounds. Conner Toolson was also in double figures with 11 points.
 
As a team, Utah Valley shot 41.3 percent (26-of-63) on the night compared to GCU's 40.8 percent (29-of-71) mark. The Wolverines connected on just 6-of-26 shots from beyond the arc to GCU's 12-of-35 mark.  UVU out-rebounded GCU 44-42.
 
Braun led Grand Canyon with a game-high 31 points. The junior guard connected on 10-of-20 shots from the field and knocked down 7-of-13 shots from long range. DeWayne Russell helped with 21 points while Kerwin Smith added 12.

OGBE RANKS 10TH IN THE NATION IN 3-POINT FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
As of Jan. 10, UVU junior forward Kenneth Ogbe holds the 14th-best three-point field goal percentage in the nation at 49.2 percent. Ogbe currently sits just below the 2.5 threes per game needed to be officially listed on the NCAA stat leaders. Ogbe has knocked down 30-of-61 shots from beyond the arc this season and averages 2.0 makes from beyond the arc per game. Ogbe is shooting 48.5 percent from the field this year, knocking down 50 of the 103 shots he has taken this season.