UTAH VALLEY TRAVELS TO EMERALD CITY TO TAKE ON SEATTLE U ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY

• Utah Valley continues Western Athletic Conference play on Friday at Seattle U. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. (MT) at the Redhawk Center. The Wolverines will also take on the Redhawks on Saturday at 7 p.m. (MT) as part of the new WAC format for this season, which features games on back-to-back days.
   
• Fardaws Aimaq recorded a 23-point, 16-rebound double-double and Evan Cole added a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double to lead Utah Valley to an 81-77 win over California Baptist on Saturday night at the UCCU Center. Leading by two points, 79-77, with eight second to go, Aimaq knocked down a pair of free throws to help secure the game as Utah Valley (4-5) completed the two-game sweep over CBU (3-4, 0-2) on back-to-back nights and improve to 2-0 in WAC play.
   
• Fardaws Aimaq tied his own UVU single-game rebound record with 20 boards at Weber State on Jan. 2. He also pulled down 20 rebounds against Wyoming on Dec. 12, which broke the previous UVU single game record of 19 rebounds set by Baylee Steele against BYU on Nov. 9, 2018. Aimaq has recorded 15 or more rebounds in five of UVU's seven games this season.
   
• As of Jan. 13, Aimaq leads the nation in rebounds per game at 15.2 a contest. He also leads the country in offensive rebounds per game (5.11) and ranks first in defensive boards per game (10.11). Aimaq ranks third in the nation in total rebounds with 137 this season. With 137 total rebounds, Aimaq is already just 102 rebounds shy of breaking into the top-10 all-time UVU single season rebounds chart. He also ranks fifth in the nation with seven double-doubles.
   
• Utah Valley ranks 8th in the nation in assists per game, dishing out 19.4 a contest. The Wolverines also rank 32nd in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.39 and 46th in field goal percentage (48.1 percent).
   
• Mark Madsen enters his second season as the head coach of the Wolverines. The two-time NBA champion, former Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach, and former Stanford basketball star went 11-19 during his first season with UVU. He is just the third head coach in UVU's Division I history. Madsen took  over the Utah Valley program last season 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 played for the Minnesota Timberwolves for six seasons.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
This week's games at Seattle U will be broadcast live on ESPN+, which is available at ESPNplus.com. The games will also be broadcast over the radio waves with Jim McCulloch calling the action. Jason Erickson will be handling the color commentary duties on the radio. The radio broadcast will be aired live on ESPN 960 AM radio. A live stream of the radio broadcast will also be available at ESPN960Sports.com.

ABOUT SEATTLE U
Seattle U enters the week with a 7-5 overall record. The team has won four of its last five games, including two straight. The Redhawks wrapped up non-conference play last week with a 98-63 win over Saint Martin's. The team holds a perfect 4-0 record at home this season. Junior guard/forward Riley Grigsby scored a game-high 24 points in SU's win over Saint Martin's on Jan. 9. He leads the Redhawks in scoring at 18.6 points a game. Sophomore guard Darrion Trammell, who added 17 points against Saint Martin's, also averages double figures at 17.5 points a contest. Trammell leads the team in assists, averaging 6.2 per game, which ranks 18th nationally. Junior forward Emeka Udenyi leads the team on the boards, pulling down 7.8 rebounds per game. As a team, Seattle U averages 72.6 points per game while limiting opponents to a 64.3 points per game average.

SERIES HISTORY VS. SEATTLE U
Utah Valley and Seattle U meet up on the basketball hardwood for the 22nd time on Friday night. The Redhawks lead the all-time series 11-10. Utah Valley has won five of the last eight meetings. The Redhawks swept last season's regular season series, taking an 87-85 win in Orem before picking up an 83-50 victory in Seattle. The last time the two teams met in Seattle, the Redhawks defeated UVU 83-50 on Jan. 11, 2020.

Last 10 Results vs. Seattle U (SU leads series 11-10)
02/08/2020    Seattle U def. Utah Valley, 87-85    Orem, Utah
01/11/2020    Seattle U def. Utah Valley, 83-50    Seattle, Wash.
02/26/2019    Utah Valley def. Seattle U, 77-68    Seattle, Wash.
01/12/2019    Utah Valley def. Seattle U, 88-78    Orem, Utah
03/03/2018    Utah Valley def. Seattle U, 73-47    Orem, Utah
02/03/2018    Seattle U def. Utah Valley, 55-54    Seattle, Wash.
03/09/2017    Utah Valley def. Seattle U, 65-53    Las Vegas, Nevada
03/04/2017    Utah Valley def. Seattle U, 61-54    Orem, Utah
02/04/2017    Seattle U def. Utah Valley, 63-50    Seattle, Wash.
02/27/2016    Seattle U def. Utah Valley, 72-69    Seattle, Wash.

AIMAQ LEADS THE NATION ON THE BOARDS
As of Jan. 13, Aimaq leads the nation in rebounds per game at 15.2 a contest. He also leads the country in offensive rebounds per game (5.11) and is first in defensive boards per game (10.11). Aimaq ranks third in the nation in total rebounds with 137 this season. With 137 total rebounds, Aimaq is already just 102 rebounds shy of breaking into the top-10 all-time UVU single season rebounds chart.

DISH MASTERS
Utah Valley ranks eighth in the nation in assists per game, dishing out 19.4 a contest. The Wolverines also rank 32nd in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.39 and 46th in field goal percentage (48.1 percent).Individually,  Blaze Nield ranks third nationally in assist turnover ratio at 5.83. Trey Woodbury leads the team in assists at 4.6 a game.

DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE
Fardaws Aimaq and Evan Cole each recorded a double-double in the 81-77 win over California Baptist on Jan. 9. Aimaq had 23 points and 16 rebounds while Cole tallied 14 points and 11 boards. The last time Utah Valley had two players recorded a double-double in the same game was on Jan. 7, 2017 when Brandon Randolph (18 points/10 rebounds) and Isaac Neilson (14 points/16 rebounds) each had them.

SO CLOSE
Utah Valley has dropped three of its five games this season by single digits. The Wolverines lost by five points to Wyoming, eight points to Utah, and eight points to Weber State.