OREM, Utah – Alexis Cortez hit a jumper with 24.7 seconds remaining as Utah Valley University closed out its pre-Christmas schedule with a 56-53 win over UC Riverside on Saturday at the UCCU Center.
 
Cortez' jumper from just inside the 3-point line broke a 53-53 tie and gave her nine points on the day, seven of which came in the final quarter. Eve Braslis finished with 12 points and a career-high 14 rebounds for her first double-double while Jordan Holland led the Wolverines (6-6) with 13 points.
 
"It feels to get a win and go into the break on a positive note. I was really proud of our defensive effort and our resolve on the boards was excellent," said UVU head coach Cathy Nixon. "It was a great overall effort against a very good UC Riverside team and I think we're headed in the right direction."
 
After trailing by as much as six early on, Utah Valley got within two, 14-12, at the end of opening quarter after Madison Grange put back a missed jumper with 20 seconds to go.
 
The Wolverines trailed 18-16 when Braslis hit a jumper to tie it and Josie Williams followed with a second-chance bucket to give UVU a 20-18 lead. After Malou De Kergret knocked down a shot from the free-throw line, Gabrielle Leos hit back-to-back jumpers to give Utah Valley a 24-20 lead. Keilanei Cooper beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer for the Highlanders to make it a 24-23 score at the half.
 
With UVU up 36-33 late in the third, Leos drilled a 3-pointer and stole the ensuing in-bound pass and scored to give the Wolverines a 41-33 advantage. Utah Valley led 41-35 after three.
 
A 7-2 run to begin the fourth quarter gave UVU its biggest lead of the game, 48-37. The Highlanders (4-8) responded, extending their pressure defensively and going a 10-0 run to get within a point 48-47.
 
Cortez hit a pair from the line to give Utah Valley a 53-50 lead with 2:03 remaining. After both teams came up empty on their next possessions, Tianna Eaton tied the game with 50 seconds left with a corner 3-pointer. After a timeout, Cortez hit the game-winner and Holland hit 1-of-2 from the line with just under four seconds left. UC Riverside secured the rebound on the second free throw but the outlet pass was stolen by Leos as time expired to preserve the win and a 2-0 week for the Wolverines.
 
Jannon Otto led all scorers with 14 points and also grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out eight assists for UC Riverside. Marina Ewodo also had a double-double for the Highlanders, who were coming off of a 71-49 win at Weber State on Thursday, with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
 
The Wolverines out-rebounded UC Riverside 44-38 with Cortez grabbing seven rebounds in addition to Braslis' 14. Leos finished with nine points while Grange added seven points and six boards. Point guards Maria Carvalho and Sophia Jacobsson combined to hand out eight assists with four each.
 
Utah Valley will take a short Christmas break before returning to action next Saturday, Dec. 29 at Cal State Fullerton in the final non-conference game of the season.