• Utah Valley returns home from a three-game road swing to host in-state foe Utah Tech in an Old Hammer Rivalry game on Saturday afternoon at the UCCU Center. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
   
• Utah Valley has suffered just two losses over the last two seasons in the comfy confines of the UCCU Center. The Wolverines have won 23 of their last 25 games at home.
   
• Utah Valley head coach Todd Phillips played for Utah Tech head coach Jon Judkins for two seasons at Snow College during the 1995-96 and 1996-97 seasons.
   
• Drake Allen scored 13 points while Tanner Toolson and Caleb Stone-Carrawell each had 11 to lead Utah Valley in a 78-65 road loss to WAC leader Grand Canyon on Thursday night at Global Credit Union Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. Allen scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half. He connected on 5 of 12 shots from the field and hit 3 of 5 shots at the free throw line. He also pulled down four rebounds to go along with three steals.
   
• As a team, Utah Valley leads the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.11. Drake Allen leads the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.86. UVU also ranks third in assists per game at 13.72. Trevin Dorius ranks fifth in the WAC in rebounding at 7.61 boards a game. Dorius also ranks third in offensive boards per game at 2.89.
   
• Utah Valley is only one of six teams in the nation that returned players with a total of zero starts from the 2022-23 season. UVU has 11 new players this season, including seven transfers. The only returning players that saw time last season are Jaden McClanahan and Ethan Potter and neither started a game last season.
   
• Todd Phillips enters his first season as the head coach of the Utah Valley basketball team.  Phillips is no stranger to UVU as he spent the past four seasons as an associate head coach/assistant coach under previous head coach Mark Madsen. Phillips helped UVU to two WAC regular season titles (2020-21, 2022-23) and an impressive 70-51 record, including 48 wins over the last two seasons.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday's game at Utah Tech will be broadcast live on ESPN+, which is available on the ESPN app and on ESPNplus.com. Brandon Crow and Josh Kallunki will be on the call for the ESPN+ broadcast. The game will also be broadcast over the air waves in Utah County with Jim McCulloch and Brice Larson on the call. The radio broadcast will be aired live on ESPN 960 AM radio with a live stream available at ESPN960sports.com.  Larson will host the pregame/halftime/postgame show for the game on ESPN 960 AM. 

ABOUT UTAH TECH
Utah Tech enters Saturday's contest with a 7-10 overall record and a 3-3 mark in WAC play. Utah Tech holds a 4-7 record on the road this season. The Trailblazers have dropped three of their last four games, including a 75-65 setback to Southern Utah on Thursday night in Cedar City. Four Trailblazers finished in double figures against the T-Birds led by junior guard Noa Gonsalves' game-high 18 points. Junior guard Beon Riley recorded a 17-point, 13-rebound double-double in the setback. Gonsalves leads the team in scoring at 11.8 points per game. Tanner Christensen and Riley also average double figures at 11.4 and 10.1 points per game, respectively. Christensen leads the team on the boards, pulling down 6.4 rebounds a game. As a team, Utah Tech averages 69.8 points per game while allowing opponents a 75.5 points per game average. 

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE TRAILBLAZERS
Utah Valley and Utah Tech will meet for the eighth time as NCAA Division I programs. Utah Tech took the first meeting this season, taking a 65-53 win at Burns Arena on Dec. 2. Utah Valley swept the two-game series last season, winning 71-60 at home before picking up a 76-69 win in St. George. Utah Valley holds an all-time 3-1 record against the Trailblazers in Orem. Utah Tech's lone win over UVU in Orem was a 93-89 win on Feb. 13, 2021. 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.

LAST TIME vs. UTU: Utah Tech 65, Utah Valley 53 (12/2/23 - St. George, Utah)
Caleb Stone-Carrawell led Utah Valley with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting, but a cold night from the field for the Wolverines and foul trouble in the front court proved to be insurmountable as the Utah Tech Trailblazers protected their home court for a 65-53 win on Dec. 2 at Burns Arena.

UTAH VALLEY, ALLEN LEAD WAC IN ASSIST/TURNOVER RATIO
As a team, Utah Valley leads the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.11. The team also ranks third in assists per game at 13.72. Individually, Drake Allen leads the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.86. Trevin Dorius ranks fifth in the WAC in rebounding at 7.61 boards a game. Dorius also ranks third in offensive boards per game at 2.89. K'mani Doughty ranks fourth in the WAC at the free throw line among those who have attempted 15 or more rebounds with an impressive 88.4% mark, knocking down 38 of 43 shots at the charity stripe. Allen ranks sixth in the league in assists at 3.25 helpers a game. Dorius ranks seventh in blocks at 1.39 a game. 

MCCLANAHAN IS ONE OF ONLY TWO WAC PLAYERS TO RECORD A 10-PLUS ASSIST GAME
Jaden McClanahan dished out a career-high 10 assists in Utah Valley's 81-73 win over Carroll College on in the team's season opener on Nov. 6. It is one of only two 10-plus performances in the WAC this season. Alex Schumacher recorded 11 assists in Seattle U's 92-55 win over Idaho on Nov. 22. 

UCCU CENTER MAGIC
Utah Valley holds an impressive 75-17 (81.5%) record at home since a win over Seattle U on March 4, 2017. The Wolverines hold an all-time 226-63 (78.2%) record as the team is in its 21st season at the UCCU Center. The Wolverines are averaging 10.9 wins a season on their home hardwood. UVU finished 14-1 at home last season. The team has won 23 of its last 25 games at home and 31 of its last 35 at the UCCU Center. Utah Valley's 14 wins at home during the 2022-23 season tied the program record for home wins in a season with the 2006-07, 2011-12, and 2018-19 seasons. UVU is 6-1 at home this season.