UVU HOSTS DENVER IN SUMMIT LEAGUE/WAC CHALLENGE
Utah Valley puts its 17-game home win streak on the line Saturday night as the Wolverines welcome Denver as part of the Summit League/WAC Challenge. Tip-off at the UCCU Center is set for 7 p.m.

Jake Toolson scored a game-high 19 points and Conner Toolson added 18 to lead Utah Valley to an 82-59 win over Western Colorado on Wednesday night at the UCCU Center. The win pushed UVU's home win streak to 17 games, which is tied for the fourth-best streak in the nation. Connor MacDougall scored a season-high 14 points and TJ Washington toyed with a triple-double, scoring nine points with nine assists and seven rebounds. Baylee Steele led the Wolverines on the boards with 10 rebounds

Jake Toolson was been named Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 19-25. It is the first WAC Player of the Week honor of the season and the third of his career. Toolson averaged 16.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game as the Wolverines went 3-0 last week. He shot 66.7 percent (16-of-24) from the floor, including a blistering 77.8 percent (7-of-9) mark from three-point range and an impressive 90.9 percent (10-of-11) from the free throw line over the three games

Jake Toolson scored 20 points and Ben Nakwaasah added a career-high 18 to lead Utah Valley to the MGM Main Event Middleweight title with an 87-72 win over Long Beach State last week at Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas. Jake Toolson led the Wolverines with 20 points on a perfect 8-for-8 clip from the field, including a 2-of-2 mark from beyond the arc and a perfect 2-of-2 performance from the free throw line. He also pulled down five rebounds and dished out four assists. Baylee Steele recorded a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double in the win.

Conner Toolson was named the MGM Main Event MVP after 19.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.0 steals per game over the two games at the tournament. The senior guard shot 60.9 percent (14-of-23) from the field, including a 42.9 percent (6-of-14) clip from beyond the arc.

Utah Valley is currently tied for the fourth-longest active home win streak in the nation at 17 games. The Wolverines look to extend their win streak to 18 games against Denver on Saturday night.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday night's game against Western Colorado will be broadcast live on UVUtv and the WAC Digital Network (WACdigitalNetwork.com). UVU has also entered into a new partnership with KSLtv. The KSLtv app will be carrying all home UVU men's basketball games live. The game will also be streamed live through the GoUVU YouTube channel, and on the GoUVU Facebook page. Brandon Crow and Holton Hunsaker will be on the call. The game will also be broadcast over the radio waves as Jim McCulloch enters his ninth season as the radio play-by-play personality. Josh Kallunki will be handling the color commentary duties on the radio. The radio broadcast will be aired live on ESPN 960AM radio. A live stream of the radio broadcast will also be available at ESPN960Sports.com.

SUMMIT LEAGUE/WAC CHALLENGE
After three games, the WAC leads 2-1 in The Summit League/WAC Challenge. The Challenge features head-to-head competition between all nine teams. Matchups were set based upon factors including the previous year's achievements, records and RPI rankings, as well as projected rankings in the upcoming season. Those teams with home games in 2018 will play on the road in 2019 and vice versa. In addition, teams won't face the same opponent in back-to-back years.

The complete list of 2018 matchups
Nov. 6 Grand Canyon at South Dakota State L, 74-79
Nov. 6 North Dakota State at NM State W, 73-56
Nov. 13 California Baptist at Oral Roberts W, 70-69
Dec. 1 Kansas City at Purdue Fort Wayne 2 p.m. ET
Dec. 1 CSU Bakersfield at South Dakota 3:30 p.m. CT
Dec. 1 Denver at Utah Valley 7 p.m. MT
Dec. 5 North Dakota at UT Rio Grande Valley 7 p.m. CT
Dec. 6 Omaha at Seattle U 7 p.m. PT
Dec. 20 Chicago State at Western Illinois 2 p.m. CT

The matchups for the 2019-20 season were also announced with times and dates to be determined. Those are: South Dakota at California Baptist; South Dakota State at CSU Bakersfield; Oral Roberts at Chicago State; Purdue Fort Wayne at Grand Canyon; Western Illinois at Kansas City; NM State at Denver; Seattle U at North Dakota; UT Rio Grande Valley at Omaha; and Utah Valley at North Dakota State.

ABOUT DENVER
Denver enters Saturday's game at UVU with a 2-5 record. The Pioneers have dropped two straight, including an 88-72 loss to in-state foe Northern Colorado on Wednesday night in Denver. After opening the season with a home win over Maine, DU has dropped five of its next six games, including its last two against Fairfield and Northern Colorado. Denver was a member of the Western Athletic Conference during the 2012-13 season before moving to the Summit League. The Pioneers are coached by Rodney Billups (brother of former NBA player Chauncey Billups). He is in his third season with the team and holds a 33-34 record. Senior guard Ronnie Harrell Jr. leads the team in scoring at 14.9 points per game. Senior guard Joe Rosga, who has not played the last four games, ranks second on the team at 12.3 points a game, followed by junior guard Ade Murkey at 12.1 points a contest. As a team, Denver is averaging 66.3 points per game, while allowing opponents a 71.3 points per game average. DU is shooting 45.5 percent from the floor this season with a 38.3 percent clip from long range.

SERIES HISTORY VS. DENVER
Utah Valley and Denver meet up on the basketball hardwood for just the third time on Saturday night. The two teams meet up for the first time in Orem, Utah on Saturday. The series is tied 1-1 with Denver winning the series opener, 75-62, on Nov. 18, 2015 in Denver. UVU then overcame a 27-point deficit to defeat the Pioneers, 88-85, in Denver on Nov. 23, 2016. The win over DU in 2016 is one of the biggest comebacks in NCAA history. Drexel overcame a 24-point deficit to defeat Delaware on Feb. 22, 2018. The game is part of the Summit League/WAC Challenge that was created this season.

All-Time Results vs. Denver (Series tied 1-1)
Nov. 18, 2015    Denver def. Utah Valley, 75-62    Denver, Colo.
Nov. 23, 2016    Utah Valley def. Denver, 88-85    Denver, Colo.
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UVU EXTENDS HOME WIN STREAK TO 17 GAMES WITH WIN OVER WESTERN COLORADO
Jake Toolson scored a game-high 19 points and Conner Toolson added 18 to lead the Utah Valley University men's basketball team to an 82-59 win over Western Colorado on Wednesday night at the UCCU Center. The win pushed UVU's home win streak to 17 games, which is tied for the fourth-best streak in the nation.

After falling behind 16-8 to open the game, Utah Valley went on a 12-2 run over a three-minute span to take its first lead of the game, 20-18, with 11:06 to play in the half. The Wolverines then followed it up with a 16-2 run bookended by Connor and Jake Toolson threes to give UVU a 33-20 advantage with five minutes remaining in the first half. The two teams played even over the final five minutes as the Wolverines were able to take a 46-35 lead into the break.
 
Utah Valley opened the second half with a 9-2 run capped off by an Isaiah White dunk and a Conner Toolson three. The run extended the Wolverine lead to a 55-39 advantage with 15:55 to play. UVU then out-scored the Mountaineers 11-5 over the next seven minutes to push its lead to a 66-44 advantage with 8:27 to play. The Wolverines played even with WCU the rest of the way to pull out the 82-59 victory.
 
Jake Toolson scored his 19 points on an 8-of-16 shooting from the floor, including three shots from long range. He also pulled down a pair of rebounds and dished out three assists. Connor Toolson connected on 6-of-12 shots from the floor, including four threes for his 18 points. He also tallied four rebounds and two steals in the win. Connor MacDougall scored a season-high 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting. He pulled down five rebounds and had two blocks in 18 minutes of action. TJ Washington toyed with a triple-double, scoring nine points with nine assists and seven rebounds. Baylee Steele led the Wolverines on the boards with 10 rebounds. As a team, Utah Valley shot a 47.1 clip from the floor while holding Western to a 30.3 percent mark. The Wolverines out-rebounded WCU 54-33 on the night.

LAST TIME VS. DENVER (Nov. 23, 2016 - Magness Arena - Denver, Colo.)
Kenneth Ogbe scored a career-high 28 points and Jordan Poydras added a career-high 23 points to help lead Utah Valley to its biggest comeback in school history as the Wolverines overcame a 27-point deficit to defeat Denver 88-85 on Nov. 23, 2016 at Magness Arena.

Utah Valley (3-1) was just five points shy of breaking the all-time NCAA record for biggest deficit overcome to win a game set by Duke, which came back from 32 points down to defeat Tulane in 1950. The 27-point comeback win breaks the previous UVU record set last season when the Wolverines came back from a 20-point deficit to defeat UMKC, 79-70.
 
Trailing by 27 points, 54-27, with 58 seconds to play in the first half, Utah Valley went on a 6-0 run capped off by a Poydras three to cut the DU lead to 21 points, 54-33, at the half. The Wolverines outscored Denver 8-3 to open the second half, cutting the Pioneer lead to 15 points, 57-42, with 17:54 to play. The two teams then went back-and-forth over the next five minutes, as Denver was able to hold on to a 17-point lead, 67-50, with 12 minutes remaining.
 
Ogbe scored seven points over a five-minute stretch to lead Utah Valley on a 16-2 run to cut the Denver advantage to just three points, 69-66, with 7:54 to play. The Pioneers went up by six points, 73-67, at the 6:49 mark, but UVU countered with a 9-2 run capped off by a Poydras three-pointer that gave the Wolverines their second lead of the game since the opening minutes, 76-75, with four minutes to go. Utah Valley then out-scored Denver 12-10 over the final minutes and knocked down 4-of-6 free throws in the final minute to secure the come-from-behind victory.
 
Ogbe scored his career-high 28 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field, including a 3-of-4 clip from beyond the arc. The junior forward also knocked down 11-of-16 free throws. Poydras hit 5-of-11 shots from the floor, including 4-of-8 from long range for his career-high 23 points. He also connected on an impressive 9-of-11 shots from the charity stripe.
 
Zach Nelson was in double figures with 18 points, connecting on 8-of-10 shots from the field. Nelson also pulled down five rebounds and dished out a pair of assists. Isaac Neilson led the Wolverines on the boards with 10 rebounds to go along with five points and two assists. Brandon Randolph scored seven points and dished out a game-high five assists.

JAKE TOOLSON NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Utah Valley junior guard Jake Toolson has been named Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 19-25. This is his first WAC Player of the Week honor of the season and the third of his career.
 
The Gilbert, Ariz. native averaged 16.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game as the Wolverines went 3-0 last week. Toolson shot 66.7 percent (16-of-24) from the floor, including a blistering 77.8 percent (7-of-9) mark from three-point range and an impressive 90.9 percent (10-of-11) from the free throw line over the three games. He opened the week with 12 points, four rebounds and three assists in a win over Hartford. Toolson then scored 20 points on a perfect 8-of-8 shooting from the field, 2-of-2 from beyond the arc and 2-of-2 from the free throw line in Utah Valley's win over Long Beach State in the championship game of the MGM Main Event in Las Vegas. He also pulled down five rebounds and dished out four assists to help the Wolverines claim the MGM Main Event Middleweight championship belt. Toolson then scored 17 points with six rebounds and two assists in Utah Valley's win over North Dakota on Saturday as the Wolverines extended their home winning streak to 16 games – the fifth-longest active home win streak in the country.

UVU CLAIMS MGM MAIN EVENT TITLE WITH 87-72 WIN OVER LONG BEACH STATE
Jake Toolson scored 20 points and Ben Nakwaasah added a career-high 18 to lead Utah Valley to the MGM Main Event Middleweight title with a 87-72 win over Long Beach State on Wednesday afternoon at Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas.

Jake Toolson led the Wolverines with 20 points on a perfect 8-for-8 clip from the field, including a 2-of-2 mark from beyond the arc and a perfect 2-of-2 performance from the free throw line. He also pulled down five rebounds and dished out four assists. Nakwaasah scored his career-high 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor, including a 3-of-3 clip from long range. He also knocked down 3-of-4 free throws and pulled down five rebounds with five assists.
 
Conner Toolson scored 15 points, while Baylee Steele and Isaiah White also reached double figures with 14 and 13 points, respectively. As a team, Utah Valley shot a season-best 58 percent (29-of-50) from the field, including a 52 percent (11-of-21) mark from three-point range. Steele recorded a double-double with his 14 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Utah Valley and Long Beach State played through four lead changes and seven ties over the first 17 minutes of the first half. UVU then used back-to-back-to-back threes by Isaiah White, Ben Nakwaasah, and Conner Toolson to go on a 9-0 run and take a 40-28 lead with 1:22 left in the half. The Wolverines took a 41-34 advantage into the break.
 The two teams played evenly through the first 12 minutes of the second half until UVU pushed its lead to 12 points, 63-51, on Conner Toolson and Nakwaasah threes. Toolson then gave UVU a 66-53 lead after knocking down a three with seven minutes to play. The Wolverines then out-scored LBSU 13-9 the rest of the way to secure the win.
 
Conner Toolson was named the MGM Main Event Middleweight MVP after scoring a combined 38 points over the two games at the tournament

CONNER TOOLSON NAMED MGM MAIN EVENT MVP
Conner Toolson was named the MGM Main Event Middleweight MVP after scoring 19.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.0 steals per game over the wins over Hartford and Long Beach State. He shot 60.9 percent (14-of-23) from the field, including a 42.9 percent (6-of-14) clip from long range.

UVU HOLDS THE FOURTH-RANKED ACTIVE HOME WIN STREAK IN THE NATION, TIES SCHOOL RECORD
Utah Valley won a school-record 16 games at home last season, finishing the 2017-18 campaign with a school-record 16-1 record at home, surpassing the previous record of 14-1 set by the 2006-07 team. Utah Valley currently has the nation's fourth-longest active home win streak in the nation at 17 games behind South Dakota State (24), Charleston (18), Houston (18), and Montana (17). The Wolverines look to extend their win streak to 17 games on Wednesday night against Western Colorado. UVU tied the school record for longest home win streak at 17 games, which was set from the 2004-05 season to the 2005-06 season.

Longest Active Home Win Streaks in the Nation
1.    South Dakota St.    23    
T2.    Charleston    19
T2.    Houston    19
T4.    Montana    17
T4.    Utah Valley    17    
T6.    Buffalo    15
T6.    Nebraska    15
8.    UNC Greensboro    13
T9.    Murray State    12
T9.    Tennessee    12
T11.    LSU    11
T11.    Tulsa    11
T11.    Rider    11

CONNER TOOLSON MOVES UP ON THE CAREER STEALS AND THREE-POINTERS MADE CHARTS
Conner Toolson moved up to fifth on the all-time UVU steals list. He passed up cousin Ryan Toolson (2003-04, 06-09) for the fifth spot and is now just five steals away from tying Jordan Swarbrick (2007-11) for the fourth spot. Holton Hunsaker is UVU's all-time steals leader with 157. Toolson is now all alone in fifth on the all-time at UVU on the three-point field goals made chart with 147 and is just 14 made threes away from tying UVU great Ronnie Price for fourth on the all-time threes list.

MAN OF STEELE
Redshirt junior Baylee Steele pulled down a school-record 19 rebounds against BYU on Nov. 9. Steele's 19 boards breaks the previous single game UVU mark of 18 set by Jon Bell at Florida Gulf Coast on March 5, 2004. Geddes Robinson tied the 18-rebound mark on Jan. 28, 2012 against NJIT. The record stood for 14 years before Steele broke it on Nov. 9, 2018 at BYU. Steele is averaging team-best 9.3 rebounds per game this season.

HOME SWEET UCCU CENTER
Utah Valley holds an all-time 169-46 (78 percent) record in 13 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 a school-record 16-1 record. The team holds the nation's fifth-ranked active home win streak in the country at 16 games.