Utah Valley at New Mexico State (Feb. 15)
6 p.m. MT | Pan American Center | Las Cruces, N.M.
Utah Valley Game Notes | New Mexico State Game Notes

Game Information
Live Video Stream: WatchESPN.com
TV: ESPN3 | FOX Sports Southwest | FOX Sports (Okla.) | Comcast | FOX Sports (Ariz.) | FOX College Sports Pacific | AltitudeTV (2)
Live Stats Link: UVU at New Mexico State Live Stats

Utah Valley at UT Rio Grande Valley (Feb. 17)
6 p.m. MT/7 p.m. CT | UTRGV Fieldhouse | Edinburg, Texas
Utah Valley Game Notes | UT Rio Grande Valley Game Notes

Game Information
Live Video Stream: WAC Digital Network
Live Stats Link: UVU at UT Rio Grande Valley Live Stats
 

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OPENING TIP

Utah Valley women's basketball will hit the road for a two-game road swing that includes an ESPN3 primetime matchup versus WAC powerhouse New Mexico State Thursday at 6 p.m. MT and a contest versus UT Rio Grande Valley Saturday at 6 p.m. MT.

Thursday evening's broadcast of UVU's contest at NMSU will also be televised via FOX Sports Southwest, FOX Sports Oklahoma, FOX Sports Arizona, FOX College Sports Pacific, AltitudeTV 2 and Comcast.

The Wolverines (10-14, 4-5 WAC) found their way back into the win column with a 68-65 win over UMKC to end a four-game skid and sweep the season series against the 'Roos. UVU finished with four double-figure scorers led by 14 points apiece from senior guards Taylor Christensen and Mariah Seals in that contest.

UVU's senior leaders, Christensen and Seals form the second highest scoring backcourt duo in the WAC with a combined 29.0 points per game. The senior backcourt has averaged 30 points in their last six outings together.

The fourth-year Utah Valley floor general, Seals enters the week atop the WAC assists leaderboard during league play with 6.0 dimes per game. With nine assists versus UMKC, Seals has tallied eight or more assists in three straight outings.

On defense, Christensen leads the WAC in steals with 63 takeaways and a league-best 2.7 steals per contest. Christensen has recorded a steal in 22 games this year, including three or more in 11 of those contests.

Behind Christensen's defensive abilities, Utah Valley has recorded a WAC-best 240 steals. UVU also sits atop the the WAC leaderboard in turnover margin ( 3.96)  and steals per game (10.0 spg).

Coming into this week's contests, the Wolverines boast the league's top-ranked scoring offense and passing team in league play. Against conference foes, UVU is averaging a WAC-best 67.9 points per game and 15.3 assists per game.

About the Aggies
Current three-time defending WAC Champion New Mexico State (12-11, 6-3 WAC) enter Thursday on a two-game skid after back-to-back road losses at CSU Bakersfield and Grand Canyon. The Aggies bring into the contest the WAC's second-leading scorer in senior guard Brooke Salas, who has averaged 18.7 points per game in league play. Salas also paces NMSU from three-point territory, shooting a conference-best 48.4 percent from deep against WAC foes. Behind Salas' scoring, NMSU boasts the conference's second-ranked scoring offense that puts up 66.8 points per game against league opponents. The Aggies' offense also features the WAC's overall season assist leader, as senior guard Zaire Williams racks up 5.0 dimes per games on the year. In addition to their offense, the Aggies hold the WAC's top rim-protecting defense with 4.5 swats per contest. Salas leads NMSU in turning away opposing shooters with a WAC-best 1.9 swats per game.

Series History vs. New Mexico State
Thursday evening's matchup between the Wolverines and Aggies will be the 13th all-time meeting between the squads on the hardwood. UVU heads into the contest trailing NMSU 2-10 in the all-time series, as the Aggies have eight straight victories against the Wolverines. New Mexico State topped Utah Valley earlier in the year, earning a 82-72 win over the Wolverines inside Lockhart Arena on Jan. 20, 2018. Senior guard Mariah Seals helped lead four UVU double-digit scorers with 20 points in that outing. UVU's last victory against NMSU on the road came in an 87-81 win in the Pan American Center on Feb. 27, 2014. In the head-to-head coaches battle, UVU head coach Cathy Nixon squares off for the second time against NMSU first-year head coach Brooke Atkinson. Nixon trails Atkinson 0-1 in the opposing sideline matchup.

About the Vaqueros
UT Rio Grande Valley (11-13, 1-8 WAC) begins the week on a three-game losing streak after dropping contests at Grand Canyon and CSU Bakersfield last week. The Vaqueros bring into Saturday's contest the WAC's most accurate shooter in senior center Laura Van Tillburg, who boasts a league-leading 56.8 percent shooting percentage (83-of-146) this season. Van Tillburg also leads UTRGV in blocks and rebounds, posting averages of 1.2 blocks and 5.8 boards per contest in her 23 outings on the year. With those averages, Van Tillburg sits at fourth in the WAC in blocks and 10th overall in rebounds. UTRGV lands atop the WAC stat leaderboard in rebounding margin, outrebounding opponents by 3.0 rebounds per contest. In addition, the Vaqueros rank second in the league on the glass with 38.6 boards per game as a team.

Series History vs. UT Rio Grande Valley
Saturday night's contest between the Wolverines and the Vaqueros will mark the 28th all-time meeting between the two squads. UVU holds a 14-13 advantage in the all-time series matchup. In their last meeting, UVU earned a 69-60 home victory over UTRGV inside Lockhart Arena on Jan. 18, 2018. Seniors Mariah Seals and Taylor Christensen combined for 37 points and 10 assists in that outing. The last time Utah Valley visited Edinburg, Texas, UT Rio Grande Valley defeated the Wolverines 64-55 on Jan. 26, 2017, inside the UTRGV Fieldhouse. Seals poured in a season-high 25 points for UVU in her last appearance on the Vaqueros' home court. UVU head coach Cathy Nixon has racked up three career wins in the head-to-head battle versus UTRGV's fifth-year head coach Larry Tidwell. Nixon's Wolverines seek their first win in Edinburg, Texas, since the 2012-13 season.

UVU ends four-game skid in win versus UMKC
Behind a balanced scoring effort with five double-digit scorers, Utah Valley women's basketball ended its four-game skid with a 68-65 victory to sweep the season series against UMKC Saturday afternoon inside Lockhart Arena. UVU (10-14, 4-5 WAC) senior Taylor Christensen, who was honored for reaching 1,000 career points prior to the game, finished with 14 points to match senior backcourt teammate Mariah Seals who tied a season-high nine assists. Sophomore forward Jordan Holland tallied 13 points and eight boards, while junior guard Britta Spencer added 12 points and sophomore guard Gabrielle Leos poured in 10 to round out the Wolverine double-figure scoring.

Backcourt in Front
Utah Valley's senior leaders in guards Taylor Christensen and Mariah Seals form the second highest-scoring backcourt duo in the WAC on the year with a combined 29.0 points per game. Christensen ranks fifth on the WAC scoring leaderboard with a team-best 15.1 points per game, while Seals averages 13.9 points per contest to rank eighth on the league scoring leaderboard. With three 20-point efforts in her last five outings, Seals sits at fifth among all WAC scorers with 15.1 points per contest during league play. UVU's newest member of the 1,000-point club, Christensen is 12th with 13.0 points per game versus league foes. In addition, junior Britta Spencer and sophmore Gabrielle Leos give UVU the second highet scoring starting backcourt in the WAC with a combined 42.6 points per contest, as they each average 6.8 points per game on the season. UVU's lone seniors, Christensen and Seals begin their week with at least 25 points as a duo in each of their on-court appearances together versus WAC opponents. Seals and Christensen have averaged a combined 30 points in their last six outings together.

Making History in the Valley
Senior Taylor Christensen sits at second in program history in all-time career steals (188).  UVU's single-season record holder for steals, Christensen remains 35 steals behind the program's all-time steals leader Asumi Nakayma (223). The 5-8 senior guard, Christensen became the seventh Wolverine in UVU's Division I era to score 1,000 career points versus Chicago State. In the WAC opener at CSU Bakersfield, Christensen surpassed her former Wolverine teammate Rhaiah Spooner-Knight  for seventh on the program's all-time career scoring list. After increasing her minutes total every season since becoming a Wolverine, Seals currently holds the top spot on the school's all-time minutes played with 4,023 minutes of action during her career. She also currently stands above the UVU all-time minutes per game chart with 35.0 MPG. In her 111th career start versus NMSU at home, Seals became UVU's all-time leader in career starts. The Wolverines' fourth-year floor general, Seals surppased former UVU player and All-American Robyn Fairbanks for most career starts in school history.

Stealing the Show
Last year's WAC steals leader, Christensen finds herself at 34th in the country with a league-leading 2.7 steals. She also is 42nd in the nation with a WAC-best 63 steals. Christensen has tallied at least one steal in 21 of her 22 outings during her senior campaign, including three or more takeaways in 11 of those appearances. The Wolverines have won both the steals and turnover battle in 14 contests this season, including season-highs of 18 steals and 29 forced turnovers in their road win at Chicago State. UVU has forced 15 or more turnovers in 11 of the last 13 games, while recording double-digit steals in seven of those outings. Behind their success at limiting foes' scoring chances, Utah Valley leads the WAC in both steals with 10.0 takeaways per contest and turnover margin ( 3.96).

Mariah's Helping Hands
After racking up three or more assists in 16 of the last 17 games, senior guard Mariah Seals ranks second in the WAC with 114 assists and 4.8 assists per contest. Seals has racked up eight or more assists in three straight outings, including a season-high matching nine dimes versus UMKC to sit at first in league play with 6.0 dimes per contest. UVU's floor general, senior Mariah Seals pushed her streak of consecutive games with an assist versus UMKC to 29 games dating back to last season. In addition, she has racked up multiple assists in 27 of those contests. The 5-3 Wolverine point guard, Seals has recorded or tied for the team high in assists in 20 of her 24 outings on the year. With Seals' passing skill, UVU leads the league with 15.3 assists per game as a team against WAC foes. Among the program's all-time assists leaders, Seals is third on UVU's all-time career assist chart (426) in her senior campaign.

On the Road Again
UVU will take to the road again for a two-game road trip for games at New Mexico State and UT Rio Grande Valley. The road swing marks two of three road contests the Wolverines will play over their final five games of the 2017-18 regular season. Utah Valley's first road wins of the 2017-18 campaign came at UMKC and Chicago State to cap a four-game road trip.

Wolverine Gladiators
UVU guards Mariah Seals, Taylor Christensen, Gabrielle Leos, and Britta Spencer each average 29-plus  minutes per game this season. Seals headlines the group of Wolverine gladiators with 36.1 minutes per game to rank third in the WAC. The senior point guard has played every minute during six of UVU's last eight contests. Meanwhile, Christensen's 32.8  average minutes of action puts her at 14th in the WAC in minutes averaged. Spencer (29.9 MPG) and Leos (29.4 MPG) join their senior teammates on the WAC top-25 list for minutes played, in 20th and 22nd, respectively. Seals and Christensen each spent 1,000-plus minutes on the court during their junior year in 2016-17, finishing top-10 in the WAC in minutes per game. In her junior campaign, Seals led the WAC in minutes per game with 36.7 and total minutes played with 1,001. Christensen joined her Wolverine gladiator counterpart in the 1,000-minute club last season with 1,036 total on-court minutes, while ranking eighth in the league in minutes per game with 33.4.

Get That Dirt off Your Shoulder
Among the top three-point shooters in the WAC, guard Mariah Seals ranks fourth in the conference in three-point field-goal percentage on the year with a 37.9-percent mark from beyond the arc on the year. Entering the sixth week of league play,  Seals is fourth in the WAC with 2.2 three-point makes per game against conference foes. Outside of Seals' three-point accuracy, senior guard Taylor Christensen is among the top-10 overall shooters in the WAC. Christensen has knocked down 43.3 percent (127-of-293 FG) of her field goal attempts this season, rounding out the league's top-10 field goal percentage list. Seals also ranks among the league's top-15 leaders in shooting percentage, as her 40.9-percent clip (119-of-221 FG) lands her at 15th.

Charity at the Line
UVU senior guard Taylor Christensen leads the Wolverines at the charity stripe with a WAC-best 78 made free throws. She has converted 74.3 percent of her shots at the free-throw line to rank seventh in the WAC in free throw percentage. Meanwhile, Christensen's 105 trips to the foul line puts her atop the WAC leaderbord in free throw attempts this year. Mariah Seals is second on the team in efficiency at the free-throw line, sinking 73.2 percent of her extra attempts to rank 10th in the WAC. Finishing with a career-high 10 free throws on her career-best 11 foul shot attempts versus Seattle two games ago, sophomore forward Jordan Holland has nailed 73.4 percent of her free throws during league contests to land to rank 13th in the conference. UVU's 318 made free throws as a team leads the WAC, while its 73.4-percent free-throw percentage is second among all teams in the league. In addition, the Wolverines' 433 trips to the foul line is the most by any WAC team on the season.

Taylor-Made Glass
Senior guard Taylor Christensen begins the week at sixth among all guards in the WAC on the glass, pulling down 4.7 boards per contest. In addition, Christensen has finished or tied as the Wolverines' leader in rebounds in nine contests, including UVU's victories at home over Air Force and Dixie State. With 8.5 boards per contest in her last four outings, UVU sophomore forward Jordan Holland begins the week at fifth in the WAC with 7.6 boards per game during WAC play. Holland's 4.0 offensive rebounds per contest against league opponents lands her at first in the WAC. The 6-0 foot forward, Holland has posted a career-high seven offensive boards twice in games versus CSU Bakersfield and Chicago State. UVU's leading reounder with 5.1 boards per game, Holland pulled down a career-best 12 rebounds at Grand Canyon.

Fuel to the Fire
After averaging 10.8 bench points in 16 games prior, Utah Valley's bench has combined to score 20.0 points per game in five of the squad's last eight contests. During the Wolverines' lone pair of road wins at Kansas City and Chicago State, sophomore center Leya Harvey and sophomore guard Alexis Cortez fueled UVU's resurging bench scoring. The sophomore duo combined for all of the squad's season-high 33 bench points at UMKC and guided UVU's 29 bench points at CSU. In the Wolverines' last outing versus New Mexico State, freshman guard Nehaa Sohail enjoyed her best game off the sidelines in a UVU uniform with six points and five rebounds in 18 minutes. Paired with nine points from Cortez and another two from Harvey, Utah Valley's bench finished with 17 points against the Aggies. Behind their bench's resurgence, the Wolverines boast the WAC's highest scoring offense against league opponents with 67.9 points per game versus . UVU also ranks among the top-five teams during conference play in scoring margin.