BOISE, Idaho – Eve Braslis led four players Utah Valley University players in double figures but Mountain West Champion Boise State University held on to win, 77-69, on Tuesday night at ExtraMile Arena.
 
Braslis finished with 16 while Josie Williams matched her career-high with 15, and Alexis Cortez and Jordan Holland both added 13. The Wolverines (0-5) trailed 64-62 with 7:35 to go, but the Broncos (4-3) went on a 9-0 run to take a 73-62 lead. Cortez hit a three to get UVU within six, but Riley Lupfer answered with her seventh three of the game to help the Broncos hold on. Lupfer's seven makes from beyond the arc matched a career-high, with six of those coming in the second half, as she finished with a game-high 23.
 
Braslis finished 7-for-13 from the field while Williams was 6-for-8 from the floor and also grabbed eight rebounds. A'Shanti Coleman chipped in 14 points and eight rebounds for the Broncos while Braydey Hodgins scored 13 and Rachel Bowers had a game-high nine boards.

"While I'm disappointed in the final score I was very happy with the way we competed," said UVU head coach Dan Nielson. "We're making progress and we fought tonight against a very good mid-major program in Boise State." 

After Boise State scored the first basket of the game, the Wolverines converted on four straight attempts and jumped out a 9-4 lead when Williams knocked down a jumper. UVU led 11-10 when Nehaa Sohail hit a corner three and Braslis got a layup to extend it to 16-10.
 
The Broncos responded with a 10-0 run, getting five of those points from the free-throw line, before Williams hit a jumper to give her six points in the opening quarter. Boise State led 20-18 after one.
 
The Wolverines trailed 31-26 midway through the second when Holland knocked down a three. Lupfer responded for the Broncos with a 3-pointer and Cortez answered that with another make from beyond the arc and it was a 34-32 game. Holland hit her second 3-pointer of the quarter to later tie it at 37-37 before Bowers scored the last points of the half to give Boise State a 39-37 lead at the break.
 
Braslis gave UVU the lead right out of the break, hitting two free throws and scoring a bucket to give the Wolverines their first advantage since the opening quarter, 41-39. Lupfer came right back with her first of three makes from distance in the quarter to give BSU the lead right back, but Williams scored and converted a free throw to put UVU back in front as the teams traded buckets. 
 
Boise State made four 3-pointers in the third including one from Hodgins during a 7-0 spurt that found the Wolverines down 56-50 with 3:43 left in the quarter. The Broncos extended it to 11 straight points to take a 60-50 lead, and led 62-51 with 2:19 to go. Utah Valley was able to close the quarter on a 7-2 run to get within six, 64-58, after three.
 
Utah Valley scored the first four points of the fourth to get within two, 64-62, and extend its run to 11-2. Hodgins pushed the lead back to five after a layup and free throw, and Lupfer knocked down another three to give the Broncos a 70-62 lead.

The Wolverines were 26-for-58 (44.8%) from the field while the Broncos shot 44.4% (28-for-63). The rest of the stat sheet was also balanced, with Boise State holding a slight, 35-34, advantage on the glass and turning the over 14 times to UVU's 15. The Broncos held their biggest advantage in fast break points, outscoring Utah Valley 21-2 in transition. 
 
The Wolverines now return to Orem for three straight home games beginning Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. against Antelope Valley in the UCCU Center.