OPENING TIP
- After over six weeks away from home — a total of 45 days — Utah Valley is finally set to return to the UCCU Center on Saturday afternoon against defending WAC Champion California Baptist at 2 p.m. UVU will also travel to St. George to face Dixie State on Monday afternoon at 3 p.m. Both games will air live on ESPN+.
- Utah Valley has been idle since New Year's Day with two COVID-19 postponements affecting the schedule. Monday's game at Dixie was rescheduled from Jan. 8, and a game that was slated for Jan. 13 against Seattle U in Orem will now be played on Monday, Jan. 24.
- Saturday's games begins a stretch of five games in 10 days, which also includes a two-game trip to Texas next weekend.
- Josie Williams is tied for second among all WAC players at 16.1 points per game while also pulling down a league-best 11.7 rebounds per contest, which ranks ninth in the country. She enters the weeked with eight double-doubles, tied for 14th in the nation.
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolverines dropped both games to start WAC play on the first of two trips to Texas this season. UVU had second half leads in both games but fell at Abilene Christian and Tarleton, two teams that used fourth-quarter runs to earn wins. Against ACU,
Josie Williams finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds and
Madison Grange set a new career-high of 19 points in the loss at Tarleton. The Wolverines are looking to snap a five-game skid.
ABOUT THE OPPOSITION
HISTORY vs CBU
California Baptist, winners of six straight, enters Saturday's game at 11-2 overall and 2-0 in WAC play after a 28-point win at Dixie State on Thursday. The defending WAC regular season and tournament champions have won 19 straight WAC games and haven't lost in conference since Feb. 26, 2020, which was a UVU win in Orem. Caitlin Harper leads the league at 18.1 points per game while WAC Player of the Year Ane Olaeta is scoring 15.9 points and a dishing out a nation-leading 8.2 assists per game. CBU is 5-1 all-time against UVU with the teams splitting two prior games in Orem.
Dixie State is 5-9 overall and 1-2 in the WAC after Thursday's loss to CBU. Breaunna Gillen is averaging 16.1 points and Emily Isaacson is grabbing 8.6 rebounds per game to lead the Trailblazers, who host Seattle U on Saturday. UVU and Dixie State have not met since both were competing at the junior college level in the NJCAA and as part of the the Scenic West Athletic Conference. Utah Valley made the direct jump from junior college athletics to NCAA DI in 2003. Dixie State moved from junior college to NCAA Division II and is now in year two of a four-year transition to NCAA DI.
COMING UP
The Wolverines are back in Texas next week as they travel to UT Rio Grande Valley (Jan. 20) and Lamar (Jan. 22).
