UTAH VALLEY SET TO TAKE ON UTRGV ON THURSDAY NIGHT IN THE LONE STAR STATE
Utah Valley heads back out on the road this week as the team heads out on its WAC southwest road trip with games at UT Rio Grande Valley and New Mexico State. The Wolverines will open the trip at UTRGV on Thursday night. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. MT

Despite a pair of 20-point performances from Brandon Averette and Casdon Jardine, Utah Valley dropped an 87-85 overtime thriller to Seattle U on Saturday afternoon at the UCCU Center. Averette scored his 20 points on a 7 of 12 clip from the field, including a perfect 5 of 5 mark from the free throw line. He also dished out seven assists. Jardine knocked down 8 of 13 shots from the field, including a 4 of 7 mark from long range. He also pulled down six rebounds. Emmanuel Olojakpoke was also in double figures with 13 points as he went 4 of 6 from the field and a perfect 5 of 5 from the free throw line. He also pulled down six boards to go along with a pair of blocks. TJ Washington just missed a double-double with nine points and nine assists. He also had six rebounds.
 
As of Feb. 11, Utah Valley ranks 11th in the nation in total blocks with 134 swats. The Wolverines also rank 11th nationally in blocks per game at 5.6 a contest. Individually, Emmanuel Olojakpoke ranks 10th nationally with 67 blocks. He also ranks 12th in blocks per game at 2.79. With 67 blocks already this season, Olojakpoke is five blocks away from breaking the all-time UVU single season blocks record of 71 set by Akolda Manyang during the 2017-18 season.

Utah Valley has played 14 games this season that have been decided by six points or less. UVU has won four of those games--a six-point 68-62 win at North Dakota State, a two-point 69-67 win at Wyoming, a two-point win over UTRGV, and a four-point win at Grand Canyon.  The Wolverines have dropped 10 of its 15 losses this season by just six points or less. UVU has dropped eight of its last 14 games by five points or less, including a three-point loss at Mount St. Mary's, a five-point loss to Weber State, a one-point loss at Southern Utah, a three-point loss at Long Beach State, a five-point setback at Kansas City, a one-point loss at CSU Bakersfield, a four-point loss to California Baptist, and a two-point overtime loss to Seattle U. In eight of UVU's 14 losses, the Wolverines had a lead/tie in the last five minutes of the game. At Kentucky, UVU was down by just one point with three minutes to play.

Junior forward Isaiah White leads the Wolverines in scoring at 14.1 points per game. Senior TJ Washington is second at 13.2 points a game, followed by Brandon Averette at 12.3  and Casdon Jardine at 10.4. White also leads the team on the boards at 9.1 rebounds per game, while Emmanuel Olojakpoke leads the WAC and ranks 10th in the nation with 67 blocks this season.

Mark Madsen enters his first season as the head coach of the Wolverines. The two-time NBA champion, former Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach, and former Stanford University basketball star makes his debut season as a head coach. He is just the third head coach in UVU's Division I history. Madsen takes over the Utah Valley program after serving the past six seasons as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers. He was a two-time NBA champion as a player with the Lakers (2001 and 2002), and he played for the Minnesota Timberwolves for six seasons.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Thursday night's  game at UT Rio Grande Valley will be broadcast live on the WAC Digital Network (WACsports.com/Watch). Jonah Goldberg will be handling the play-by-play duties. The network is also available on Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, and Roku TV. The game will also be broadcast over the radio waves as Jim McCulloch enters his 10th season as the Voice of the Wolverines. Jason Erickson 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 UT RIO GRANDE VALLEY
UT Rio Grande Valley enters Thursday's game with a 9-14 overall record and a 5-5 mark in WAC play. UTRGV has won three straight games, including a pair of road wins at Kansas City and Chicago State last week. The Vaqueros hold a 7-3 mark at home at home this season. Senior Lesley Varner II scored 18-straight points during a 20-0 run to lift the Vaqueros to their third-straight win, 75-64 over the Chicago State on Saturday night in the Windy City. Jordan Jackson leads the team in scoring at 15.5 points per game. Varner II follows closely behind at 13.8 points a contest, while Javon Levi is also in double digits at 10.6 points a game. Varner II leads the team on the boards, pulling down 5.7 rebounds a game. As a team, UTRGV averages 71.7 points a game while limiting opponents to a 69.8 points per game average.

SERIES HISTORY VS. UTRGV
Utah Valley and UT Rio Grande Valley meet up on the basketball hardwood for the 30th time on Thursday night. UVU leads the all-time series 26-3. The Wolverines hold a 11-2 record all-time against UTRGV in games played in The Lone Star State. UVU has won 15 straight games against UTRGV. The last time UTRGV defeated the Wolverines was on Jan. 19, 2013 with the Vaqueros taking a 62-60 win in Edinburg.

Last Five Results vs. UTRGV (UVU leads series, 26-3)
Jan. 19, 2020    Utah Valley def. UT Rio Grande Valley, 72-70    Orem, Utah
Feb. 16, 2019    Utah Valley def. UT Rio Grande Valley, 76-64    Edinburg, Texas
Jan. 17, 2019    Utah Valley def. UT Rio Grande Valley, 82-61    Orem, Utah
Feb. 17, 2018    Utah Valley def. UT Rio Grande Valley, 84-72    Orem, Utah
Jan. 18, 2018    Utah Valley def. UT Rio Grande Valley, 84-76    Edinburg, Texas