EL PASO, Texas – A late dry spell ended the Wolverines' comeback as Utah Valley lost a hard-fought rematch with WAC-foe New Mexico State, 67-60, on Saturday night at Eastwood High School in El Paso.

After tying the game with under two minutes to play, UVU was held scoreless the rest of the way as NM State ended the game on a 7-0 run to secure the win. The Wolverines don't come home empty handed as UVU defeated the Aggies on Friday night and head home with a 1-1 split in the two-game back-to-back game series in the Lone Star State.

With the loss, the Wolverines fall to 8-9 on the season and 6-3 in conference play. The Aggies improve to 6-5 on the year and 3-5 in WAC competition.
 
"It was a physical, intense game and New Mexico State made the plays when it counted," said Utah Valley men's basketball head coach Mark Madsen. "We had too many turnovers down the stretch and we had a chance to execute our stuff and unfortunately we had too many unforced errors. I was proud of how our guys fought and how we scratched our way back into the game."
 
Evan Cole started the game off with a layup before New Mexico State went on a 12-4 run to take an early 12-6 lead with 12:58 remaining in the first half. Jaden Mcclanahan jump started a 7-0 run to help the Wolverines recapture the lead, 13-12 with 11:23 left in the opening half. NMSU countered with a 10-3 run to push its lead to 22-16 with 5:23 left. After an Aggie triple extended its lead to nine, Mcclanahan hit a pair of free throws and Jamison Overton knocked down a pull-up jumper from the elbow just before the buzzer to cut the deficit to 30-24 going into the half.
 
Blaze Nield hit a corner three and Aimaq finished a fast break layup to bring the Wolverines within one point, 30-29. The Aggies countered with a 14-7 run to push its lead out to 43-36 with 12:07 left in the game. Overton went to work, hitting several tough midrange jumpers to bring the Wolverines back. UVU used a 14-5 surge, powered by 10 points from Overton, to retake the lead, 50-48 with 7:46 remaining. NMSU rallied with a 12-5 run to regain the lead, 60-55, with 2:49 left in the game.
 
Mcclanahan knocked down the open three from the top on the assists from Aimaq to bring the Wolverines within two points with 2:28 to go. On the next possession, Mcclanahan tipped the pass away and chased it down to the give UVU possession. Trey Woodbury drew a foul and knocked down both free throws to tie the game up at 60 apiece. Utah Valley got a stop, but were unable to get up the go-ahead shot before turning the ball over. After a pair of NMSU free throws gave the Aggies a 62-60 lead, UVU was called for an offensive foul. The Wolverines got another stop but another turnover ended the comeback as UVU wouldn't score again and the Aggies hit free throws to come away with the 67-60 win.
 
Overton led UVU with 16 points to go along with four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. Aimaq snatched 15 rebounds to go along with three assists as Cole added nine points and Woodbury finished with seven points. Mcclanahan poured in nine points off the bench to go along with a team-high four helpers and a couple steals.
 
The Wolverines outshot the Aggies, shooting 43 percent from the floor while holding NMSU to just 19-of-52 from the field. UVU again won the battle inside, outrebounding New Mexico State 36-34 and outscoring the Aggies 24-18 in the paint. NMSU had the huge advantage from the charity stripe, shooting 21-of-25 from the foul line while the Wolverines finished 7-of-13 from the free throw line.
 
Utah Valley returns home for its final home stand of the season, hosting WAC-foe UT Rio Grande Valley on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 26-27, in the UCCU Center. The games are set to tip for 6:00 p.m. MT and will be broadcasted on the WAC Digital Network and on ESPN 960 AM. The Wolverines then wrap up its regular season with a trip to Phoenix, Ariz. to take on Grand Canyon in GCU arena.