Utah Valley (5-3) vs. Weber State (4-3) GAME INFORMATION
Tickets: GoUVU.com/Tickets
TV: UVUtv (Brandon Crow/Holton Hunsaker)
Live Video: WAC Digital Network
Radio: ESPN 960 AM (Jim McCulloch)
Radio Webcast: espn960sports.com
Live Stats Link: UVU StatBroadcast
 

---

OPENING TIP
After opening the season with what is likely the toughest 24 hours in basketball history with road losses at Kentucky and Duke, Utah Valley has rebounded to win five of its last six games, improving its record to 5-3 overall. The Wolverines most recently picked up an 88-80 win over UTSA at home on Saturday night. UVU welcomes in-state rival Weber State to the UCCU Center on Wednesday night in its final game of a three-game home stand. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. (MT).

Isaac Neilson recorded a 19-point, 12-rebound double-double and Connor Neilson scored a season-high 19 points to lead Utah Valley to an 88-80 win over UTSA on Saturday night. Randolph came up just one rebound shy of joining Neilson with a double-double of his own. The senior guard finished the night with 11 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals. Though Akolda Manyang saw limited minutes due to foul trouble, he led Utah Valley on the boards by setting a new career high with 14 rebounds and tied a career high with six blocks. Conner Toolson finished his night with 19 points on five threes and a perfect 5-of-5 clip from the charity stripe. Jake Toolson and Kenneth Ogbe both reached double figures in the scoring column as well, finishing the night with 16 and 13, respectively.

Utah Valley has now played four teams that won their conference tournaments last season and made trips to the NCAA Tournament, including Kentucky (SEC Tournament), Duke (ACC Tournament), UC Davis (Big West Tournament), and North Dakota (Big Sky Tournament). The Wolverines went 2-2 with wins over UC Davis and North Dakota.

UVU opened the season with what might just be the toughest 24 hours ever played in college basketball history as the Wolverines took on No. 4/5 Kentucky and No. 1 Duke on back-to-back nights to open the season. The Wolverines dropped a 73-63 decision at Kentucky before falling 99-69 at Duke. UVU has since won four straight games.

UVU welcomed a record 7,574 fans through the UCCU Center doors on Nov. 29 against BYU in the program's first-ever sold out game. The 7,574 fans breaks the previous record of 7,124 set against Utah State on Dec. 18, 2010.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Wednesday night's game will be broadcast live on the WAC Digital Network with Brandon Crow and former UVU star Holton Hunsaker on the call. The stream is available at WACsports.com/live. The game will also be broadcast on the air waves at ESPN 960 AM radio with Jim McCulloch and Josh Kallunki 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 WEBER STATE
Weber State enters Wednesday night's game with a 4-3 record. The Wildcats have dropped two of their last three games, including an 83-71 setback at Fresno State on Thursday night. The loss at Fresno State marks Weber State's first true road game of the season.  Junior forward Brekkott Chapman led the Wildcats with 21 points and grabbed a career-high eight rebounds. He also knocked down four shots from long range and dished out two assists. Zach Braxton added 14 points with five rebounds and Ryan Richardson had 10 points and made two threes. Weber State is one of the top shooting teams in the country as the Wildcats rank fourth in the nation in field goal percentage with a 53.3 percent clip. The team also ranks sixth nationally in three-point field goal percentage at 45.1 percent. WSU averages nearly 10 threes a game.  Sophomore guard Jerrick Harding leads three other Wildcats in double figures at 18.7 points per game this season. Chapman is averaging 13.9 points a contest, while Richardson is averaging 13.1 points per game. Junior forward/center Zach Braxton is also averaging double digits at 11.9 points a game. Braxton leads the Wildcats on the boards, pulling down a team-best 7.3 rebounds per game. WSU is averaging 80.0 points a game, while limiting opponents to a 64.9 points per game average.

SERIES HISTORY VS. WEBER STATE
Utah Valley and Weber State meet on the basketball hardwood for the 11th time on Wednesday. The Wildcats hold an all-time 6-4 advantage over the Wolverines. Utah Valley is 22-26 all-time against teams from the Big Sky Conference. Utah Valley picked up a double overtime 81-81 win over Weber State the last time the two teams played in Orem on Dec. 9, 2015 at the UCCU Center. Weber State took a 93-85 win last season in Ogden. WSU has never won a game in Orem (0-4), while Utah Valley has never won a game in Ogden (0-6).

All-Time Series Results vs. Weber State (WSU leads series, 6-4)
Nov. 19, 2004    Weber State def. Utah Valley, 59-51        Ogden, Utah
Dec. 20, 2004    Utah Valley def. Weber State, 71-58        Orem, Utah
Dec. 06, 2005    Utah Valley def. Weber State, 68-49        Orem, Utah
Dec. 28, 2005    Weber State def. Utah Valley, 69-62        Ogden, Utah
March 13, 2012    Weber State def. Utah Valley, 72-69        Ogden, Utah
Dec. 05, 2012    Weber State def. Utah Valley, 89-56        Ogden, Utah
Dec. 11, 2013    Utah Valley def. Weber State, 62-59        Orem, Utah
Dec. 20, 2014    Weber State def. Utah Valley, 73-61        Ogden, Utah
Dec. 09, 2015    Utah Valley def. Weber State, 84-81 (2OT)    Orem, Utah
Dec. 17, 2016    Weber State def. Utah Valley, 93-85        Ogden, Utah

NEILSON'S DOUBLE-DOUBLE LEADS UTAH VALLEY OVER UTSA, 88-80
Led by a 19-point, 12-rebound, double-double from Isaac Neilson, the Utah Valley University men's basketball team bounced back and defeated UTSA by a score of 88-80 on Saturday night at the UCCU Center.
 
Including Neilson, Utah Valley finished the night with five different players scoring double figures. The Wolverines outrebounded the Roadrunners 55-29 on the night, and hit 26 free-throws to UTSA's 14. UVU also finished the game with 36 points in the paint and got 25 points off the bench.  
 
The Roadrunners opened the second half with an 11-2 run to cut the lead to one, and eventually tied the game at 47-47. A 10-0 run from there put UTSA up by 10. Utah Valley responded with a 12-2 run, which included seven-straight points from Jake Toolson, and knotted the score up at 59 apiece. The run continued for UVU out of a timeout, and two Jake Toolson free-throws regained the lead for the Wolverines. A three from Conner Toolson moments later capped a 17-2 run for UVU. With just over one minute to play, UTSA cut UVU's lead to four on a pair of free-throws. Neilson responded by hitting a pair of free-throws of his own and recording an emphatic block on the defensive end to preserve the lead for Utah Valley lead. The Wolverines then hit their free-throws down the stretch to ice the game and secure the victory.
 
Randolph came up just one rebound shy of joining Neilson with a double-double of his own. The senior guard finished the night with 11 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals. Though Manyang saw limited minutes due to foul trouble, he led Utah Valley on the boards by setting a new career high with 14 rebounds and tied a career high with six blocks.
 
Conner Toolson finished his night with a season-high 19 points on five threes and a perfect 5-of-5 clip from the charity stripe. Jake Toolson and Ogbe both reached double figures in the scoring column as well, finishing the night with 16 and 13, respectively.

HOME SWEET UCCU CENTER
Utah Valley holds an all-time 154-46 (77.0 percent) record in 12 seasons at the UCCU Center. The Wolverines are averaging 12.5 wins a season at the UCCU Center. UVU finished play at home last season with an 8-5 record. UVU is 3-1 at home this season. UVU's game against BYU on Nov. 29 was the team's first-ever sellout since joining the Division I ranks in 2003. 7,574 fans attended the game on Wednesday night, breaking the previous attendance record of 7,124 set against Utah State on Dec. 18, 2010.

THREE-POINT STREAKING
Utah Valley has now hit a three-point field goal in 106 straight games. The last time UVU played in a game without hitting a shot from beyond the arc was on Feb. 27, 2014 against New Mexico State.

LARGEST CROWD IN UVU HISTORY
Utah Valley recorded its first-ever sellout as 7,574 fans entered through the UCCU Center doors to watch its game against crosstown rival BYU on Nov. 29. The 7,574 fans are the most ever to attend a UVU basketball game at the UCCU Center, breaking the previous record of 7,124 set against Utah State on Dec. 18, 2010.

All-Time UVU Mbb Largest Crowds
1.    Nov. 29, 2017 vs. BYU    7,574    L, 58-85
2.    Dec. 18, 2010 vs. Utah State    7,124    L, 58-76
3.    Dec. 10, 2016 vs. Utah State    6,792    L, 79-80 (OT)
4.    Feb. 25, 2012 vs. UTRGV    6,602    W, 74-64 (Ronnie Price Hall of Fame night)
5.    Jan. 03, 2012 vs. Wyoming    6,556    L, 70-76

ALL IN THE FAMILY
Utah Valley starters Conner and Jake Toolson are second cousins and basketball is in their blood. Conner and Jake's fathers are first cousins. UVU all-time leading scorer Ryan Toolson (2003-04, 06-09) is first cousins with Jake and second cousins with Conner. Ryan has enjoyed a lengthy professional career overseas. Jake is the nephew of two-time NBA champ and current Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge. Conner's father, Andy, played college basketball at BYU before playing a lengthy professional career that included two seasons with the Utah Jazz. The Toolson cousins are averaging a combined 22.9 points and 8.0 rebounds per game.

TOP RPI IN THE WAC
As of Dec. 3, Utah Valley's RPI is 42 according to WarrenNolan.com. UVU sits a spot ahead of Miami at No. 43.  The Wolverines hold the best RPI in the WAC as the team sits ahead of New Mexico State (85), CSU Bakersfield (134), Kansas City (179), Grand Canyon (232), Seattle U (239), UTRGV (240), and Chicago State (318).  The WAC's conference RPI currently sits at No. 13, ahead of Conference USA (14), Colonial (15), Big Sky (16), and WCC (17).

UVU STARTING CONTINUES TO RECEIVE VOTES IN COLLEGEINSIDER.COM TOP-25 POLL
Utah Valley started to recieve votes in the last week's CollegeInsider.com top-25 poll. The Wolverines continued to receive votes in this week's poll and sit just behind North Dakota who received six votes. UVU plays four teams this season that are currently ranked or receiving votes in the poll.

LEADING THE WAC
As of Dec. 4, Utah Valley leads the WAC in personal fouls per game at 16.8. The Wolverines also rank in the top-three in 13 different statistical categories. UVU ranks second in the WAC and 37th in the country in rebound margin at 7.9. The team also ranks second in the WAC and 38th nationally in rebounds per game at 40.88.

MANYANG AMONG NATIONAL STAT LEADERS
As of Dec. 4, Akolda Manyang ranks in the top-22 nationally in two statistical categories. Manyang ranks 19th in the nation with 21 blocks. He ranks 22nd in the country in blocks per game at 2.63 a contest.  He also ranks 43rd in offensive rebounds per game (3.25), 45th in field goal percentage (61.8), 53rd in total rebounds (73), and 61st in rebounds per game (9.1).

FIVE NCAA TOURNAMENT TEAMS ON THIS SEASON'S SLATE
Utah Valley will play five teams that made the NCAA Tournament last season. In fact, the team plays five teams that won their conference tournaments last year. Kentucky won the SEC Tournament, Duke won the ACC Tournament, UC Davis won the Big West Tournament, North Dakota won the Big Sky Tournament, and New Mexico State won the WAC Tournament. UVU has already played four of those teams this season, three of which were on the road. UVU fell to Kentucky (63-73) and Duke (69-99) on back-to-back nights. The team then defeated UC Davis at home, 80-71, in the Wolverines' home opener before getting past North Dakota, 83-75, in overtime on the road.