STEPHENVILLE, Texas—Fardaws Aimaq scored 22 points with 20 rebounds for his nation-leading 22nd double-double of the season to lead the Utah Valley University men's basketball team to a 69-56 road win over Tarleton on Wednesday night in front of a raucous crowd at Wisdom Gymnasium.
 
The win pushes UVU's record to 17-8 overall and 8-5 in WAC play. Tarleton falls to 11-15 overall and 6-7 in league play.
 
"Jaden McClanahan came in and gave us such a spark," said Utah Valley head coach Mark Madsen. "To go a perfect 2 of 2 from three and to have four assists without a turnover is great. His energy is infectious. He got guys easy shots at the basket. Obviously Fardaws with the 22 points and 20 rebounds. He's gotten himself in such tremendous shape and to go out there and being able to play 36 minutes is phenomenal. I was proud of our guys tonight. We had really good energy. It's tough to win on the road and to get the first game of a two-game road trip is big for us."
 
After playing to a 4-4 tie to open the game, Blaze Nield knocked down a three to spark a 15-3 UVU run over a five-minute span to give the Wolverines a 19-7 lead with 11:49 to play in the first half. UVU held on to the 12-point lead over the next three minutes, 24-12, with 8:21 remaining. With UVU holding a 30-20 lead with 4:42 to go in the half, Tarleton knocked down three-straight shots from long range as part of an 11-2 run to cut the UVU lead to just one point, 32-31, with 1:16 to play in the half. The Texans then outscored UVU 4-3 over the final minute as the two teams played to a 35-35 tie at the break.
 
UVU scored seven of the first 10 points of the second half to take a 42-38 lead with 16:27 to play. An Aimaq dunk and a Connor Harding three-pointer pushed the UVU lead to six points, 48-42, at the 12:32 mark. UVU led 50-42 before Justin Harmon and Aimaq both scored to start an 11-5 UVU run over six minutes of play to give the Wolverines a double digit 61-51 lead with 4:36 to play. Utah Valley then outscored the Texans 8-5 over the final four minutes to secure the road win, 69-56.
 
The 22-point, 20-rebound performance is Aimaq's second game this season with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds this season. The sophomore center scored his 22 points on 9 of 14 shooting from the field and a 4 of 5 mark from the free throw line. He also had three blocks with two assists and a steal.
 
Nield and Tim Fuller were also in double figures with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Nield knocked down four shots, including three buckets from beyond the arc. He also dished out three assists with a pair of rebounds. Fuller hit 4 of 5 shots from the floor and a pair of free throws.
 
Jaden McClanahan scored nine points on a 3 of 4 clip, including a perfect 2 of 2 mark from three-point range. He also tallied four assists and a steal in 22 minutes of play. Harding also had nine points to go along with a season-high nine rebounds. Harding also had five assists and a pair of blocks. Tim Ceaser had five points and five rebounds.
 
As a team, Utah Valley shot 49 percent (25-51) from the field with a 36.8 percent (7-19) clip from long range. The team held Tarleton to 33.3 percent (18-54) shooting and a 25 percent mark (6-24) from the three. Utah Valley outrebounded Tarleton 45-21 on the night.
 
Utah Valley continues WAC play on the road as the team travels to St. George, Utah for a Saturday night matchup with in-state foe Dixie State in the Old Hammer Rivalry. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and on ESPN 960 AM radio.