UTAH VALLEY WRAPS UP HOME SLATE THIS WEEKEND AGAINST UT RIO GRANDE VALLEY

• Utah Valley returns to Orem for its final home stand of the season as the team gets set to take on WAC foe UT Rio Grande Valley on Friday and Saturday at the UCCU Center. Tip-off for both games is set for 6 p.m.
   
• Along with most teams in the  nation and in the WAC, Utah Valley has had numerous issues and cancellations because of the COVID virus. The Wolverines have had several shutdowns and have had seven games canceled this season due to COVID-19.
   
• Utah Valley currently holds the No. 2 seed at the upcoming 2021 Hercules Tires WAC Basketball Tournament in Las Vegas. The seeding for this year's tournament will be based on a formula that takes into account both winning percentage and the percentage of games played. The top two seeds in the tournament get a first-round bye.
   
• The Wolverines split a two-game WAC series at New Mexico State last week at Eastwood High School in El Paso, Texas. In game one of the two-game set, Trey Woodbury knocked down a go-ahead three with three minutes to play and UVU never trailed again as it hung on for the 69-66 win. Jamison Overton led the Wolverines with 18 points, while Evan Cole and Woodbury each posted 15 points. In game two, a late dry spell ended UVU's comeback bid in the 67-60 setback. Overton led UVU with 16 points in the loss.
   
• Fardaws Aimaq has been named to the 2020-21 Lou Henson National Player of the Year Award watch list. The Lou Henson National Player of the Year Award, which is presented annually to the top mid-major player in Division I college basketball, honors the former Illinois and New Mexico State head coach who won 775 games in 41 seasons.
   
• Aimaq continues to lead the nation in rebounds per game at 15.5 a contest. He also leads the nation in defensive rebounds per game (10.88) and ranks second in offensive boards per game (4.65). The Vancouver, B.C. native also ranks fourth nationally with 12 double-doubles.  With 264 total rebounds, Aimaq already ranks fifth on the UVU single season rebounds chart.
   
• Aimaq broke his own school record with a career-high 25 rebounds against Dixie State on Feb. 13. The 25 rebounds are the most boards pulled down in a single game this season nationally.
   
• Mark Madsen is in 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
Friday and Saturday's games against UT Rio Grande Valley will be broadcast live on the WAC Digital Network and the GoUVU YouTube channel. Brandon Crow will be handling the play-by-play duties. The game will also be broadcast over the radio waves on ESPN 960 AM radio with Jim McCulloch calling the action and Josh Kallunki handling the color commentary duties. A live stream of the radio broadcast will also be available at ESPN960Sports.com.

ABOUT UT RIO GRANDE VALLEY
UT Rio Grande Valley enters this week's games against Utah Valley with a 9-4 overall record and a 2-0 mark in WAC play. The Vaqueros played their first game in over two weeks on Sunday night against Dallas Christian, defeating the Crusaders 116-51. It was also UTRGV's first game since the passing of head coach Lew Hill. Coach Hill passed away while sleeping at home on Feb. 7 at the age of 55, just hours after coaching the team in a 77-75 win at Texas Southern on Feb. 6. In Sunday's win over Dallas Christian, UTRGV forced a program-record 27 steals, breaking the school's previous record of 24 set on Jan. 5, 1981. The Vaqueros also forced a season-high 47 turnovers in the win. UTRGV has had 12 of its games canceled this season, including 11 of its WAC games. Friday's game against UVU will be the first WAC game the Vaqueros have played since a 72-65 win over Dixie State at home on Jan. 16. Sean Rhea leads the team in scoring at 15.2 points per game this season. Quinton Johnson II and Laquan Butler also average double figures at 13.0 and 10.8 points per game, respectively. As a team, UTRGV averages 78.5 points per game while limiting opponents to 65.8 a contest. The team leads the nation in three point field goal percentage defense (26.1) and ranks second nationally in turnovers forced (20.54) and steals per game (10.5).

SERIES HISTORY VS. UTRGV
Utah Valley and UT Rio Grande Valley meet up on the basketball hardwood for the 31st time on Friday night. UVU leads the all-time series 26-4. UVU had won 15 straight games against UTRGV before last season's 80-72 setback in Edinburg, which was the last meeting between the two teams and head coach Lew Hill's last game against UVU. Prior to last season's loss. Utah Valley is 14-1 against UTRGV at home. The lone setback at home to the Vaqueros was a 56-53 loss on March 10, 2010.

Last Five Results vs. UTRGV (UVU leads series, 26-4)
Feb. 13, 2020    UT Rio Grande Valley def. Utah Valley, 80-72    Edinburg, Texas
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