UTAH VALLEY HOSTS SAM HOUSTON STATE ON SATURDAY AFTERNOON
Utah Valley continues play at home on Saturday afternoon as the Wolverines host Southland Conference foe Sam Houston State at the UCCU Center. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.

Utah Valley is currently tied for the fourth-longest active home win streak in the nation at 19 games. South Dakota State holds the nation's longest active home win streak at 26 games, followed by Houston (24), Charleston (21), Utah Valley (19), and Montana (19).

Utah Valley has won eight of its last nine games, including a first-ever win in Ogden last week over Weber State and a win over Idaho State on Wednesday night. The lone setback during that stretch was an 80-69 setback at Pac-12 foe Arizona on Dec. 8.

Connor MacDougall scored a career-high 28 points and pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds to lead Utah Valley to its 19th straight home win in an 88-77 victory over Idaho State on Wednesday night at the UCCU Center. MacDougall set a UVU single-game field goal percentage record as he knocked down a perfect 12-of-12 shots from the floor. The 12-for-12 shooting overtakes Mitch Bruneel who previously held the field goal mark in an 8-for-8 performance against UTRGV on March 13, 2014. It also marks the second best mark in the country behind only Levi Bradley of Northern Illinois, who made a perfect 13-of-13 shots against Oakland on Nov. 25.

Jake Toolson leads Utah Valley in scoring at 15.7 points per game, followed closely behind by Conner Toolson at 14.3 points a contest. The Toolson duo has scored nearly 40 percent of UVU's points this season. Jake has been impressive from the floor, shooting 56.2 percent (73-of-130), including a team-best 48.1 percent (26-of-54) clip from three-point range. Baylee Steele leads UVU on the boards, pulling down 7.8 rebounds a game, while TJ Washington leads the team in assists at 4.31 a game.

Utah Valley ranks in the top-50 in five statistical team categories and three individual category. The Wolverines rank 19th in the nation in total rebounds with 490. The team also ranks 33rd nationally both defensive rebounds per game (28.92) and total assists (192). UVU also ranks 37th in the country in three-point field goals made (109) and 50th in field goal percentage (48.2). Individually, Jake Toolson holds the highest national ranking as he is 34th in total minutes at 425:49. Conner Toolson ranks 38th in steals with 24. Baylee Steele is 42nd in the nation in rebounding with 102 total boards.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday's game against Sam Houston State will be broadcast live on the WAC Digital Network (WACdigitalNetwork.com). UVU has also entered into a new partnership with KSLtv. The KSLtv app will be streaming 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.

ABOUT SAM HOUSTON STATE
Sam Houston State enters Saturday's game with a 4-7 overall record. The Bearkats had lost four straight until picking up a 78-57 win at home over Alabama State on Tuesday night. The team is still looking for its first road win of the season as the Bearkats hold a 0-6 road record. Senior guard Marcus Harris led SHSU with a team-high 12 points in Tuesday's win over Alabama State. Senior guard Cameron Delaney and junior forward/center Kai Mitchell were also in double figures with 11 points apiece. SHSU shot 42.9 percent from the field and knocked down 11 threes in the win over Alabama State. Delaney leads the team in scoring at 11.5 points per game, followed by Mitchell at 9.5 points a contest. Mitchell leads the team on the boards, pulling down 7.1 rebounds a game. As a team, SHSU averaged 69.9 points per game while allowing opponents a 70.0 points per game average. Sam Houston State is coached by Jason Hooten who is in his ninth season with the team. He holds a 162-120 record while at the school.

SERIES HISTORY VS. SAM HOUSTON STATE
Utah Valley and Sam Houston State will meet up on the basketball hardwood for just the second time on Saturday afternoon. The two teams met for the first time last season in Huntsville, Texas with the Wolverines taking a 75-64 road win. UVU holds an all-time 3-4 record against teams from the Southland Conference.

All-Time Results vs. Sam Houston State (UVU leads series 1-0)
Dec. 22, 2017    Utah Valley def. Sam Houston State, 75-64        Huntsville, Texas

LAST TIME VS. SAM HOUSTON STATE (Dec. 22, 2017  - Huntsville, TX)
HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Led by a 21-point 10-rebound double-double from Akolda Manyang, Utah Valley pulled away late in the game to defeat Sam Houston State, 75-64, on Dec. 22, 2017 at the Bernard Johnson Coliseum.
 
UVU's win improved its record to 9-5 for the season and handed Sam Houston State its first home loss of the year. As a team, the Wolverines shot 48.1 percent from the field compared to the Bearkats' 36.5 percent clip. Utah Valley enjoyed a slight advantage in the paint with two more points than SHSU, and recorded seven blocks compared to just one for Sam Houston State.

Utah Valley struggled to get on the scoreboard early, and after Sam Houston State scored the first-four points of the game, a 9-0 run put the Wolverines up for the first time. Back-to-back layups from Manyang fueled the run, along with a five-minute scoreless stretch from the Bearkats.
 
Three-straight makes from 3-point range for UVU just moments later put Utah Valley up by 11 and continued an 18-3 run. Manyang and Kenneth Ogbe connected on consecutive layups as the hot stretch went on. Before SHSU was able to score its next bucket, the Wolverines' had pulled of a 22-3 run.
 
The Bearkats were able to find a bit of rhythm on offense around the seven-minute mark, and trimmed Utah Valley's lead down to nine with just under three minutes to play in the half. A three from Brandon Randolph gave UVU some relief and pushed the lead back to 12, and the Wolverines took a double-digit lead into halftime, 38-27.
 
Ogbe led UVU in the scoring column through the half with 10 points, and was followed closely behind by Manyang and Randolph's nine and eight. Manyang's five rebounds led Utah Valley, and three Wolverines finished the half with two assists. UVU connected on 51.7 percent of its field goals in the first half of play, and grabbed three more rebounds than the Bearkats.
 
Sam Houston State came out of the locker room hot and scored the first-seven points of the second half. Ogbe finally connected on a three to stop the bleeding for the Wolverines and push the lead back to seven. UVU faced some early foul trouble in the second half as SHSU found itself in the bonus just four minutes in.
 
The next stretch of the contest saw both teams trade baskets as Utah Valley's lead stayed in single digits for nine minutes. With 11 minutes to play in the game, Conner Toolson hit his second three of the half to restore the Wolverines' lead to double digits.
 
The Bearkats scored the next-eight points to cut the lead down to two, but Jake Toolson knocked down a shot from distance to preserve the lead for the Wolverines. Moments later, SHSU cut the deficit down to one, but another Conner Toolson three kept UVU ahead.
 
UVU continued to hit timely threes and knocked down its free-throws as it closed the game with a 10-0 run to win by 11.
 
In addition to his double-double, Manyang blocked four shots for Utah Valley. Randolph nearly joined Manyang with a double-double of his own as he finished the game with 14 points and eight assists to go with four rebounds. Ogbe was the final Wolverine in double figures as he ended the game with 13 points.

MACDOUGALL'S PERFECT NIGHT LEADS UTAH VALLEY TO 88-77 WIN OVER IDAHO STATE
OREM—Connor MacDougall scored a career-high 28 points and pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds to lead Utah Valley to its 19th straight home win in an 88-77 victory over Idaho State on Wednesday night at the UCCU Center.

MacDougal set a UVU single-game field goal percentage record as he knocked down a perfect 12-of-12 shots from the floor. The 12-for-12 shooting overtakes Mitch Bruneel who previously held the field goal mark in an 8-for-8 performance against UTRGV on March 13, 2014. It also marks the second best mark in the country behind only Levi Bradley of Northern Illinois, who made a perfect 13-of-13 shots against Oakland on Nov. 25.
 
Tied 8-8, Idaho State went on a 9-2 over just 1:14 to jump out to a 17-10 lead with 11:57 to play in the first half.  The Bengals then jumped out to a 10-point, 29-19, lead with 6:39 left. Utah Valley then came alive as the team went on a 16-2 run over a four-minute span to take a 35-31 advantage with 1:28 remaining. The Wolverines would take a 40-33 lead into the break.
 
Utah Valley scored the first five points of the second half to extend its lead to 14 points, 47-33, with 17:47 to play. Idaho State countered with a 15-4 run of its own to cut the UVU lead to just three points, 51-48, with 12:48 remaining. UVU bounced right back with a 15-4 run over five minutes to take back a 14-point, 66-52, advantage with 7:43 left to play. UVU then outscored Idaho State 25-22 the rest of the way to secure the 88-77 victory.
 
The 28-point, 10-rebound performance is MacDougall's first double-double of the season. He also tallied two steals, one block and an assist. Jake Toolson scored 18 points on a 5-of-7 clip from the floor and knocked down a perfect 8-of-8 shots at the free throw line.
 
Ben Nakwaasah scored 11 points with a game-high seven assists. He also had four rebounds on the night. Conner Toolson also scored 11 points to go along with five rebounds, four steals and one assist. Isaiah White was also in double figures 10 points.
 
As a team, Utah Valley shot 55.6 percent (30-of-54) on the night despite going just 3-for-19 from beyond the arc. UVU knocked down 25-of-27 free throws on the night, including a perfect 17-of-17 in the second half. Idaho State shot 50 percent (27-of-54) from the field and knocked down 12 three-pointers.  

MACDOUGALL RECORDS BEST SINGLE-GAME SHOOTING PERFORMANCE IN UVU HISTORY, 2ND BEST MARK IN THE NATION THIS SEASON.... JAKE TOOLSON TIES TOP FG % MARK
Connor MacDougall had the best shooting night in UVU single game history against Idaho State on Dec. 19 as he knocked down a perfect 12-of-12 shots from the floor. The 12-for-12 shooting overtakes Mitch Bruneel and Jake Toolson who previously held the field goal mark in an 8-for-8 performances. MacDougall's mark also is the second best shooting performance in the country behind only Levi Bradley of Northern Illinois, who made a perfect 13-of-13 shots against Oakland on Nov. 25. MacDougall's perfect night ties him for the best single-game field goal percentage mark in UVU history with Bruneel and Toolson.

UVU RECORDS THIRD-BEST THREE-POINT SHOOTING PERFORMANCE IN SCHOOL HISTORY -- 14TH-BEST SINGLE-GAME PERFORMANCE IN NATION THIS SEASON
Utah Valley connected on 62.5 percent of its threes in a 98-78 win at Northern Arizona on Dec. 8 in Flagstaff. The Wolverines knocked down 15-of-24 shots from beyond the arc. The 62.5 percent shooting is the third-best three-point shooting percentage in school history. The three-point shooting performance at NAU is tied for the 14th-best shooting percentage mark in the nation this season. UVU shot 66.7 percent twice in wins over Haskell (1/4/11) and against UTRGV (3/13/14). The 15 threes is tied for the fourth-best total in UVU history. The Wolverines knocked down a school-record 18 threes in a win at BYU (11/26/16) two seasons ago.

CONNER TOOLSON MOVES UP ON THE CAREER LISTS
Conner Toolson is now all alone in second on the all-time UVU steals list with 112 take aways. He is now just 45 steals away from tying Holton Hunsaker (2010-14) for the top spot on the steals chart. He ranks fifth on the made threes list with 160 and is just one three away from tying Ronnie Price (2003-05) for fourth on that chart. Toolson ranks ninth on UVU's all-time scoring list with 989 points. He needs just 11 points to become just the eighth player in UVU history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.

IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Utah Valley ranks in the top-50 in five statistical team categories and three individual category. The Wolverines rank 19th in the nation in total rebounds with 490. The team also ranks 33rd nationally both defensive rebounds per game (28.92) and total assists (192). UVU also ranks 37th in the country in three-point field goals made (109) and 50th in field goal percentage (48.2). Individually, Jake Toolson holds the highest national ranking as he is 34th in total minutes at 425:49. Conner Toolson ranks 38th in steals with 24. Baylee Steele is 42nd in the nation in rebounding with 102 total boards.

UVU TIED FOR THE FOURTH-LONGEST ACTIVE HOME WIN STREAK IN THE NATION, LONGEST STREAK IN UVU HISTORY
Utah Valley has won a school-record 19 straight games at home dating back to last season. The last loss at home was an 85-58 setback to BYU on Nov. 29, 2018. Since that time the Wolverines have won 19 straight at the UCCU Center. The Wolverines 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 is currently tied with Montana for the nation's fourth-longest active home win streak in the nation at 19 games behind South Dakota State (26), Houston (24), and Charleston (21).  The previous UVU home win streak record was 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.    26
2.    Houston    24    
3.    Charleston    21
4.    Utah Valley    19
4.    Montana    19
5.    Nebraska    17
5.    Buffalo    17
6.    UNC Greensboro    16
7.    Murray State    15

UCCU CENTER RANKED NINTH-BEST HOME COURT ADVANTAGE IN AMERICA, ACCORDING TO KENPOM.COM
Utah Valley holds an all-time 172-46 (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 fourth-longest active home win streak in the country at 19 games. According to KenPom.com, UVU holds the nation's ninth-best home court advantage. Colorado holds the best home court advantage, followed by Iowa State, Air Force, Arkansas, Illinois State, Wake Forest, Texas Tech, Louisiana Tech, and Utah Valley.

WAC WINS SUMMIT LEAGUE/WAC CHALLENGE
Last week, the WAC clinched the first-ever Summit League/WAC Challenge by finishing with a 6-3. 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.

The complete list of 2018 matchups/results
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 W, 90-73
Dec. 1 CSU Bakersfield at South Dakota L, 56-68
Dec. 1 Denver at Utah Valley W, 98-75
Dec. 5 North Dakota at UT Rio Grande Valley W, 70-56
Dec. 6 Omaha at Seattle U W, 90-71
Dec. 20 Chicago State at Western Illinois L, 52-81