Utah Valley (10-13, 2-6) at Chicago State (6-20, 1-8) GAME INFORMATION
Live Video: WAC Digital Network
Radio: ESPN 960 AM (Jim McCulloch/Jason Erickson)
Radio Webcast: espn960sports.com
Live Stats Link: GoCSUcougars.com
 

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OPENING TIP
Utah Valley wraps up a three-game road stretch as the Wolverines travel to the Windy City to take on WAC foe Chicago State on Saturday afternoon at the Jones Convocation Center. The game will be broadcast on ESPN 960 AM radio, which will also be webcast at www.espn960sports.com. Tip-off is set for 1:00 p.m. (MST).

The Wolverines look to pick up their first WAC road win of the season on Saturday at Chicago State. UVU holds a 3-10 overall record on the road this season with wins at Denver, BYU and UC Riverside. The Wolverines hold a 0-4 mark on the road in WAC play this year.

Kenneth Ogbe scored a game-high 24 points and Jordan Poydras helped with 15 to lead Utah Valley in an 84-76 setback on the road to UMKC on Thursday night at Municipal Auditorium. Ivory Young was also in double figures with 13 points. Andrew Bastien scored seven points with a three rebounds and a pair of blocks.
 
Sophomore guard Conner Toolson leads the Wolverines in scoring at 12.8 points per game. Neislon ranks second on the team in scoring at 11.1 points a contest and leads the team on the boards, pulling down 9.4 rebounds a game. Randolph leads the team in assists, averaging 4.4 helpers a game.

Neilson ranks in the top-50 nationally in three individual statistical categories. The junior forward ranks 18th nationally at 3.48 offensive rebounds per game and 30th in the country in rebounds per game at 9.4. He also ranks 50th with 43 blocks this season.

Utah Valley is the seventh fastest team in the nation according to KenPom.com at 74.4 possessions per 40 minutes. Savannah State (81.0) is ranked as the No. 1 tempo team in the nation, followed by The Citadel (80.7), Marshall (77.8), BYU (76.5), Central Michigan (74.9), and Lipscomb (74.6). UVU is seventh, followed by Wyoming (74.3), Green Bay (74.2), Auburn (74.1), UTRGV (74.1), Omaha (74.1) and UCLA (73.9). The Wolverines rank 10th nationally in average possession length at 14.7 seconds a possession.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday's game at Chicago State will be broadcast live on ESPN 960 AM radio with Jim McCulloch and Jason Erickson 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 6-20 overall record. The Cougars are in eighth place in the WAC standings with a 1-8 league mark. CSU's lone WAC victory this season was a 70-61 over Utah Valley on Jan. 12 in Orem. Chicago State holds an 3-5 record at home this season. The Cougars are 0-5 at home in league play this season.CSU has lost five straight. The team's last victory was a 77-57 win at home over non-conference foe Rosevelt on Jan. 18.  The team most recently dropped a 90-65 decision to Seattle U on Thursday night. Sophomore guard Fred Sims Jr. scored a game-high 26 points in the loss to the Redhawks, while senior guard/forward Trayvon Palmer helped with 23 points. Sims Jr. and Palmer lead the Cougars in scoring this season at 18.8 and 15.1 points per game, respectively. Palmer leads the team on the boards, pulling down 9.7 rebounds a game. Chicago State averages a WAC low 66.4 points per game while allowing opponents a 78.3 points per game average.

SERIES HISTORY VS. CHICAGO STATE
Utah Valley and Chicago State meet on the basketball hardwood for the 20th time on Saturday night. UVU holds an all-time 14-5 advantage over the Cougars. Utah Valley has won six of the last eight matchups between the two teams, including a clean sweep over the Cougars last season. Chicago State won for the first time since the 2015 season on Jan. 12, taking a 70-61 victory over UVU in Orem. It marked CSU's first-ever victory over the Wolverines in Orem. UVU is 5-4 all-time against Chicago State in games played in the Windy City.

Last Five Results vs. Chicago State (UVU leads, 14-5)
Jan. 12, 2016    Chicago State def. Utah Valley, 70-61    Orem, Utah
Feb. 18, 2016    Utah Valley def. Chicago State, 74-72    Orem, Utah
Jan. 23, 2016    Utah Valley def. Chicago State, 82-76    Chicago, Ill.
Feb. 28, 2015    Chicago State def. Utah Valley, 65-44    Chicago, Ill.
Jan. 29, 2015    Utah Valley def. Chicago State, 78-62    Orem, Utah

LAST MEETING VS. CHICAGO STATE (January 12, 2017)
Brandon Randolph scored a team-high 12 points and Isaac Neilson pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds to lead the Utah Valley University men's basketball team in a 70-61 setback to WAC foe Chicago State on Jan. 12 at the UCCU Center.

Tied 6-6 with 12:55 to play in the first half, Utah Valley went on an 11-0 run over the next three minutes to jump out to a 17-6 advantage 9:47 remaining in the half. The Wolverines extended their lead to as many as 14 points with 6:35 to go in the half, but Chicago State out-scored UVU 14-7 the rest of the way to cut the UVU advantage to just five points, 33-28, at the break.
 
With UVU leading 38-31 just a minute and a half into the second half, Chicago State used a 16-2 run over a four-minute span to jump out to a 50-40 lead with 11:53 to play. Utah Valley responded with a10-3 run of its own to get to within three points, 53-50, with 8:26 remaining. The Cougars out scored the Wolverines 17-11 the rest of the way to secure the victory.
 
Randolph scored his 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field and a 2-of-2 mark from the charity stripe. The junior guard also pulled down six rebounds with one assist and a steal. Conner Toolson was also in double figures with 10 points, connecting on 4-of-12 shots from the field. Toolson also had eight rebounds, two assists and a block. Neilson's 13 boards marks his 10th double-digit rebound performance of the season. The junior forward also scored seven points with a career-high six blocks. Zach Nelson scored eight points with five rebounds and two blocks. Hayden Schenck scored seven points with a pair of rebounds in 18 minutes of action.
 
Fred Sims Jr. led Chicago State with a 25-point, 10-rebound double-double. Clemmye Owens V was also in double figures with 14 points.
 
As a team, Utah Valley shot 37.9 percent (22-of-58) from the field with a 14.8 percent (4-of-27) clip from beyond the arc. Chicago State knocked down 35.9 percent (23-of-64) of its shots on the night, including a 45 percent (9-of-20) clip from long range.