• Utah Valley continues WAC play at home on Saturday with the Old Hammer Rivalry game against in-state foe Utah Tech. Tip-off at the UCCU Center is set for 2 p.m.
   
• Tahj Small scored a season-high 19 points and Tim Fuller recorded a 10-point, 11-rebound, six-assist near triple double to lead Utah Valley to an 80-64 win over Sam Houston in the team's WAC opener on Thursday night at the UCCU Center. Three other Wolverines scored in double figures, including Le'Tre Darthard with 15 points, Justin Harmon with 13, and Trey Woodbury with 10.
   
• With its 80-64 win over Sam Houston on Thursday night, Utah Valley extended its win streak to seven games. It is the eighth-best win streak in the nation. The win streak dates back to an 88-78 win over Long Beach State on Dec. 3. The Wolverines are a perfect 7-0 in the month of December.
   
• With its 77-72 win at Oregon on Dec. 20, Utah Valley became one of four WAC teams to pick up a win over a team from a Power 5 Conference. Utah Valley (Oregon) joins Sam Houston (Oklahoma, Utah), California Baptist (Washington), and Tarleton (Boston College) to pick up wins over teams from a Power 5 league.
   
• The Wolverines continue play at the UCCU Center where the team has won nine straight games. UVU has also won 13 of its last 14 games at home. The team's last loss at home was to Grand Canyon on Feb. 10, 2022.
   
• Trey Woodbury was named the Lou Henson National Player of the Week and the TicketSmarter WAC Player of the Week for his performance in Utah Valley's 77-72 win at Pac-12 foe Oregon on Dec. 20. Woodbury scored a season-high 24 points to go along with nine rebounds and six assists.
   
• Aziz Bandaogo ranks in the top-20 nationally in six statistical categories. He ranks fourth in blocks (38), seventh in blocks per game (2.71), seventh in rebounds (140), 13th in double doubles (6), 13th in rebounds per game (10.0), and 15th in defensive rebounds per game (7.14). As a team, Utah Valley ranks second nationally in blocks per game (6.4) and sixth in defensive rebounds per game (29.57).

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday's game against Utah Tech will be broadcast live on the ESPN+, which is available on the ESPN+ app and at ESPNplus.com. Brandon Crow and Josh Kallunki will be on the call for the game. The game will also be broadcast over the Utah County airwaves on ESPN 960 AM with Jim McCulloch on the call.

ABOUT UTAH TECH
Utah Tech enters Saturday's game with a 9-5 overall record and is 1-0 in WAC play after opening conference action with an 81-66 win over UTRGV at home on Thursday night. The Trailblazers have won six straight games dating back to a 77-65 win at Weber State on Dec. 3. After defeating Weber State, Utah Tech won five straight home games. Saturday's game will mark the first road game since defeating the Wildcats on Dec. 3. Junior guard Isaiah Pope scored a team-high 20 points with five rebounds, five assists, and two steals in the win over UTRGV on Thursday night. Senior forward Dancell Leter pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds with nine points. Senior guard Cameron Gooden leads the team in scoring at 15.6 points a game. Pope also averages double figures at 12.4 points a contest. Tanner Christensen leads the team on the boards, pulling down 7.5 rebounds a game. As a team, Utah Tech averages 78.3 points per game while shooting 45.9 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from three.

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE TRAILBLAZERS
Utah Valley and Utah Tech will meet for the fifth time as NCAA Division I programs. The two teams split their league matchups last season with Utah Valley taking a 79-71 win (1/8/22) before falling 80-75 (2/19/22) in St. George. The two programs first played during the 1972-73 season and played each season in the Scenic West Athletic Conference/NJCAA Region 18 until 2002-03, which was Utah Valley's final season of JUCO before moving into the NCAA Division I ranks during the 2003-04 season.

All-Time Results vs. Utah Tech (2-2)
Feb. 19, 2022    Utah Tech def. Utah Valley, 80-75 (OT)     St. George, Utah
Jan. 08, 2022    Utah Valley def. Utah Tech, 79-71             Orem, Utah
Feb. 13, 2021    Utah Tech def. Utah Valley, 93-89             Orem, Utah
Feb. 12, 2021    Utah Valley def. Utah Tech, 87-72             Orem, Utah

UTAH VALLEY EIGHTH-BEST WIN STREAK IN THE NATION AT SEVEN GAMES
With its 80-64 win over Sam Houston on Thursday night, Utah Valley extended its win streak to seven games. It is the eighth-best win streak in the nation. The win streak dates back to an 88-78 win over Long Beach State on Dec. 3. UVU then defeated BYU, Northern Arizona, SAGU, Antelope Valley, Oregon, and Sam Houston. Utah Valley's 80-64 win over Sam Houston on Thursday extended the team's home win streak to nine games. The Wolverines have not dropped a home game since falling to Grand Canyon on Feb. 10, 2022. UVU has won 13 of its last 14 games at home and 17 of its last 19.

UTAH VALLEY PICKS UP WIN OVER POWER 5 TEAM FOR A SECOND STRAIGHT SEASON
With its 77-72 win at Oregon on Dec. 20, Utah Valley became one of four teams from the WAC to pick up a win over a team from a Power 5 league this season. It also marks the second straight season that the Wolverines have defeated a team from the Pac-12 Conference as UVU defeated Washington, 68-52, last season on Dec. 21, 2021. The other three teams from the WAC to defeat a Power 5 team include Sam Houston (Oklahoma/Utah), California Baptist (Washington), and Tarleton (Boston College).

BANDAOGO ONE OF NATION'S TOP SHOT BLOCKERS, QUICKLY MOVING UP UVU SINGLE SEASON BLOCKS CHART
Newcomer Aziz Bandaogo has already established himself as one of the top shot blockers in the nation. Bandaogo ranks fourth in the country in total blocks (38) and seventh in blocks per game (2.71). He is already tied for ninth on the all-time UVU single season blocks chart with 38. 

SEEING DOUBLE
Aziz Bandaogo is averaging a double double this season at 10.9 points and 10.0 rebounds a game. Bandaogo ranks 13th in the country with six double doubles this year. His 10.0 boards a game ranks him 13th nationally.

DUNK VALLEY
Utah Valley has 53 dunks over its 14 games this season (3.7 dunks per game) and Aziz Bandaogo is responsible for 30 of them. Justin Harmon has eight dunks, followed by Trey Woodbury with six. Tim Ceaser has four and Tim Fuller has three. Ethan Potter and Tahj Small each have one.