Utah Valley (0-0) at #4/5 Kentucky (0-0) GAME INFORMATION
TV: SEC Network (Rich Hollenberg/Sean Farnam/Brooke Weisbrod)
Live Video: WatchESPN.com
Radio: ESPN 960 AM (Jim McCulloch/Holton Hunsaker)
Radio Webcast: espn960sports.com
Live Stats Link: Kentucky Live Stats
 

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OPENING TIP
Utah Valley embarks on what might be the toughest 24 hours of basketball ever played in NCAA history as the team officially opens the season at No. 4/5 Kentucky on Nov. 10 and at consensus No. 1 Duke on Nov. 11. The game at Kentucky will be a homecoming for head coach Mark Pope, who as a player helped the Wildcats to a national title in 1996 under head coach Rick Pitino. The game at Duke will be a homecoming for UVU assistant coach Chris Burgess who played for Coach K and the Blue Devils for two seasons from 1997-99.

Utah Valley played just one exhibition game as the team defeated former junior college Scenic West Athletic Conference rival Dixie State, 81-70, on Nov. 1 at the UCCU Center. Prior to UVU making the jump to Division I, the Wolverines played junior college basketball in the SWAC from 1984-2003. Senior center Akolda Manyang led the Wolverines with a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double in the win. He also tallied three blocks and one steal in 21 minutes of action.

Utah Valley returns eight players who saw significant time last season, including 2016-17 leading scorer Conner Toolson (11.9 ppg.). The Wolverines return five of their top six scorers and their top five rebounders from the 2016-17 season. WAC All-Defensive team honoree and preseason All-WAC selection Isaac Neilson returns after leading the team with 9.1 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game last season

The Wolverines welcome nine new players to this year's roster, including four who sat out the 2016-17 season due to NCAA transfer rules or injuries. UVU welcomes eight transfers and one freshman to the team. One of UVU's newcomers (Baylee Steele) will have redshirt the season due to transfer rules.

The Wolverines were selected to finish third by the media and fourth by the coaches in the WAC preseason poll. UVU received three first place votes in the media poll and one first place vote in the coaches' poll. UVU senior forward Isaac Neilson was received preseason all-WAC first team honors by the media and second team honors by the coaches.

Mark Pope enters his third season as the head coach of the Wolverines. His team scored more points than any other team in UVU history last season. UVU picked up its first-ever postseason national tournament wins with a run to the College Basketball Invitational Final Four. The team also picked up a historic win over crosstown rival BYU, scoring 114 points - the most ever scored by a BYU opponent in the Marriott Center. The Wolverines completed one of the biggest comebacks in NCAA history last season, overcoming a 27-point deficit to defeat Denver in the Mile High City. UVU also picked up a first-ever win at WAC rival New Mexico State, snapping the Aggies' 39-game conference home win streak and ended the nation's third-longest home win streak.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Friday's season opener at Kentucky will be broadcast live on the SEC Network with Rich Hollenberg on the play-by-play and Sean Farnham handling color duties. Brooke Weisbrod will take care of the sideline reporting for the SEC Network broadcast. In Utah, the game will be broadcast on DirecTV (611), DISH (408/404/596-599), Comcast XFINITY (286 and 765). The SEC Network is also available online at ESPN.com/Watch. The game will also be broadcast on the air waves at 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 KENTUCKY
Kentucky boasts one of the youngest teams in the country as the team features eight freshmen from the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation. The team lost eight members of its 2017 Elite Eight and SEC championship squad. The team has replaced 92.6 percent of its scoring and 76.6 percent of its rebounding from a season ago. The Wildcats are ranked No. 4 in the preseason USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 5 in the Associated Press preseason rankings. It marks the ninth straight season that the Wildcats begin the year ranked in the top-25. UK has been ranked in the AP Top 25 for 57 consecutive weeks. Kentucky was picked to win the SEC regular season title by both the coaches and the media in the SEC preseason polls. The Wildcats went a perfect 3-for-3 in the team's exhibition games. UK won its three exhibition games by an average of 36.6 points. UK defeated Thomas More College (103-61), Morehead State (92-67), and Centre College (106-63). Kentucky holds an all-time 561-66 record at Rupp Arena. The team has won 217 of its last 246 home games. Kentucky went 32-6 last season and the team finished 5th in the final USA Today Coaches Poll. The Wildcats made a run to the Elite Eight of the 2017 NCAA Tournament before falling to eventual national champion North Carolina, 75-73. Kentucky boasts 15 Final Four appearances and eight national titles, including a championship under current head coach John Calipari in 2012. Coach Calipari holds a 249-53 record in his eight seasons at UK. The college basketball Hall of Famer holds an all-time 652-191 record in 25 seasons.

SERIES HISTORY VS. KENTUCKY, SEC
Utah Valley and Kentucky meet up on the basketball hardwood for the first time on Friday night. The Wolverines have played just one SEC opponent in the school's 14-year Division I history as UVU has played Arkansas two times in Fayetteville. UVU dropped a 67-59 decision at Arkansas on Nov. 22, 2011, and a 79-46 loss at Arkansas on Jan. 3, 2015.

All-Time Results vs. SEC Opponents (0-2)
Nov. 22, 2011    Arkansas def. Utah Valley, 67-59    Fayetteville, Arkansas
Jan. 3, 2015    Arkansas def. Utah Valley, 79-46    Feyetteville, Arkansas

COACH POPE AND KENTUCKY
Friday's game at Kentucky will be a homecoming for Pope, who as a player helped the Wildcats to a national title in 1996 under head coach Rick Pitino. After redshirting in 1993-94, Pope helped Kentucky win back-to-back SEC titles, advance to the NCAA Elite Eight in 1995 and win the NCAA National title in 1996. Pope earned Academic All-SEC honors in 1995 and graduated from Kentucky with a degree in English in 1996.

UVU TO PLAY TOUGHEST 24 HOURS OF BASKETBALL IN NCAA HISTORY? WHAT'S BETTER THAN THE POPE IN TWO CATHEDRALS OF BASKETBALL?
Utah Valley will embark on what might be the toughest 24 hours of basketball ever played in NCAA history. Utah Valley will travel to Lexington, Kentucky to open the 2017-18 season against SEC foe Kentucky on Nov. 10 at Rupp Arena before continuing its road trip against ACC foe Duke on Nov. 11 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Kentucky and Duke own a combined 13 NCAA men's basketball national titles. Kentucky is ranked No. 4 and Duke is No. 1 in the preseason USA Today/Coaches Poll. ESPN's Kevin Connors featured Utah Valley as his Star of the Night this past summer for scheduling the two games, saying "What's better than the Pope in two cathedrals of basketball?"

UTAH VALLEY DEFEATS FORMER JUNIOR COLLEGE RIVAL DIXIE STATE IN EXHIBITION, 81-70
Behind a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double from Akolda Manyang in his Wolverine debut, the Utah Valley University men's basketball team earned an 81-70 win in an exhibition game against Dixie State on Wednesday night at the UCCU Center on Nov. 1. In addition to his double-double, Manyang recorded three blocks and a steal on the defensive end of the floor. Toolson and Randolph each pitched in 14 points apiece on the night, and Nakwaasah contributed 11 points in his UVU debut.

UTAH VALLEY PICKED THIRD BY MEDIA, FOURTH BY COACHES IN PRESEASON POLL
Utah Valley has been selected to finish third by the media and fourth by the coaches in WAC preseason polls released at the annual WAC Basketball Preview and Media Day on Oct. 11. Grand Canyon was picked to win the league in both polls. The Antelopes received six of the eight available first place votes from the coaches and 14 first place votes from the media.
 
In the coaches' poll, New Mexico State was picked to finish second with CSU Bakersfield third and Utah Valley fourth. Seattle U was fifth, followed by UT Rio Grande Valley in sixth, Kansas City seventh and Chicago State in eighth. The Wolverines did receive a first place vote in the coaches' poll.
 
On the media side, New Mexico State received seven first place votes and was picked second. Utah Valley earned three first place votes and was selected third. CSU Bakersfield received two first place votes and earned the fourth spot. UT Rio Grande Valley was selected sixth, followed by Kansas City in seventh and Chicago State in eighth.

NEILSON NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-WAC TEAM
Utah Valley senior forward/center Isaac Neilson earned preseason all-WAC first team honors by the media and second team honors by the coaches. Neilson returns to the team after nearly averaging at double-double last season at 9.6 points and 9.1 points per game. Neilson ranked second in the WAC in both rebounding (9.6) and blocks (1.6) last season. He earned WAC All-Defensive team honors for his play a season ago.

UVU BOASTS TWO PLAYERS WITH MBAs
Utah Valley might be the only team in the country with two players that have already graduated with both their undergraduate degrees and graduate degrees. Zach Nelson and Kenneth Ogbe have each earned their MBAs at UVU this past summer. The pair turned down high-paying jobs to finish out their final year of eligibility at UVU. Junior guard Hayden Schenck earned his undergrad degree this summer and is currently enrolled in his first year of UVU's MBA program. 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 3.41 team grade point average, which is likely one of the best team marks in the country.

SENIOR CITIZENS OF NCAA HOOPS
Utah Valley has two of the oldest players in NCAA Division I basketball. Utah Valley graduate student Zach Nelson is the third-oldest player in the nation at 25 years, 143 days, while Isaac Neilson ranks fourth on the NCAA Division I senior citizens list at 24 years, 352 days old. Sam Houston State's Josh Boutte is the oldest player in the nation at 25 years, 307 days. Hawaii's Gibson Johnson ranks second at 25 years, 273 days. Both Nelson and Neilson served LDS Church missions and had redshirt seasons.

UVU OPENS NUVI BASKETBALL CENTER
Utah Valley University cut down the nets on Sept. 12 to officially open the NUVI Basketball Center, a new practice and conditioning facility to house its men's and women's basketball teams. The 14,500-square-foot facility was funded entirely by private donations and sponsorships totaling approximately $4.4 million, including a lead donation from NUVI chairman and CEO Keith Nellesen.

The NUVI Basketball Center includes 8,000 square feet of court space, named the Ryan Toolson Practice Court, and nine basketball standards, with "game-day atmosphere" graphics to match the UCCU Center environment. The new Travis Hansen Strength and Conditioning Center includes roughly 1,300 square feet, with custom-made 9-foot high racks, dumbbells up to 125 pounds and an array of power and conditioning tools. The room opens up directly onto the Ryan Toolson Practice Court.
 
A mezzanine level overlooks the court and includes the Roger Fields Family Basketball Offices — 3,000 square feet of office space split into suites for the men's and women's coaching staff. Each suite features a large office for each head coach that can double as a conference room, and offices for three assistant coaches and basketball operations.

NEW FACES
Utah Valley welcomes nine new players to its roster this season, including four players (Akolda Manyang, Cory Calvert, Jake Toolson, Jerrelle DeBerry) who had to sit out last season due to NCAA transfer rules. The Wolverines have added eight new transfers (Akolda Manyang, Cory Calvert, Jake Toolson, Ben Nakwaasah, Mckay Johnson, Daniel Nyman, Jerrelle DeBerry, Baylee Steele) to this year's roster, including one (Baylee Steele) who will have to sit out and redshirt this season. UVU welcomes one freshman to the team in Orem native Richard Harward.

FIRST TIME TAKING ON NO. 1
UVU men's basketball is only the second team in UVU history to face a No. 1 ranked team when the Wolverines take on Duke on Saturday, Nov. 11. The UVU wrestling team is the only other team in school history to face a No. -ranked program. UVU wrestling took on Top-ranked Iowa on Feb. 6, 2010 in Vernal, Utah. The highest-ranked team that the UVU men's basketball team has ever faced is No. 3 Arizona on Dec. 9, 2014. UVU dropped the game, 87-56.

NELSON CLIMBING UVU CAREER RECORD CHARTS
Zach Nelson currently ranks in the top-10 in 15 different all-time individual career statistical categories. The junior forward ranks second all-time in defensive rebounds (383), third in rebounds (510), third in games started (90), fourth in blocks (77), sixth in minutes played (2530), seventh in blocks per game (0.8), seventh in field goals made (346), seventh in field goals attempted (707), seventh in three-point field goals attempted (256), seventh in assists (215), eighth in points (886), eighth in offensive rebounds (127), eighth in defensive rebounds per game (4.2), ninth in rebounds per game (5.5), and ninth in field goal percentage (.489).