NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Utah Valley saw its three-game winning streak come to an end as the Wolverines fell to Stephen F. Austin, 78-59, on the road, marking its second-largest loss of the season. Utah Valley drops to 14-7 on the season, including 5-4 in WAC play. The Lumberjacks improve to 14-8 on the year and 6-4 in conference play.
 
"You have to give a lot of credit to Stephen F. Austin," said Utah Valley head men's basketball coach Mark Madsen. "They played with more toughness and grit than we played with tonight. We needed to have a better presence in the paint and we didn't have tonight. There's a champion in our locker room and the champion didn't show up tonight. I know we will learn from this and we will come ready to play Sam Houston on Saturday."
 
Stephen F. Austin got out to an early 7-4 lead before Le'Tre Darthard led the Wolverines on a 13-2 run to take a 17-9 advantage with 12:38 to go in the opening half. The Lumberjacks countered with a 14-3 run to regain the lead, 23-20, with 7:11 to go in the half. Utah Valley responded with a 7-0 surge, clinging to a 31-28 lead with 3:17 remaining in the first half. SFA held UVU scoreless the rest of the half, finishing the half on a 10-0 run to take a 38-31 lead into the break.
 
Fardaws Aimaq hit a three to cut the deficit down to 40-34 with 18:16 to go in the game, but Stephen F. Austin took control of the game with a 12-0 over the next three minutes. Utah Valley was able to cut the lead down to 12, 67-55, with under five minutes left, but the Lumberjacks outscored the Wolverines 11-4 down the stretch to finish off the win, 78-59.
 
Aimaq led the Wolverines with 12 points to go along with 10 rebounds for his nation-leading 18th double-double of the season. Connor Harding added 12 points and Darthard chipped in nine points. Jaden McClanahan finished with eight points and a pair of steals while Blaze Nield had a team-high four assists.
 
The Wolverines shot 20-57 from the field, 5-of-14 from downtown, and 14-18 from the charity stripe. UVU held the Lumberjacks to just 4-of-16 shooting from deep, but SFA shot 50.8 percent from the floor. Utah Valley lost the rebounding battle just the third this season, 35-26, leading to a 48-24 advantage in points in the paint for Stephen F. Austin. The Lumberjacks converted 21 UVU turnovers into 26 points and doubled up the Wolverines, 10-5, in second-chance points.
 
The Wolverines continue on the road as UVU heads to WAC-newcomer Sam Houston on Saturday, Feb. 5, at 1:00 p.m. MT. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN+ and ESPN 960 AM. Utah Valley then returns home to take on Grand Canyon on Thursday, Feb. 10, at 6:00 p.m. MT in the UCCU Center.