• After winning seven of its last eight games, fifth-seeded Utah Valley will take on No. 8 California Baptist in the first round of the Hercules Tires WAC Tournament on Wednesday night at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. PT/7 p.m. MT
   
• Utah Valley snapped two significant win streaks last week in Texas to wrap up regular season play. Utah Valley picked up a 63-60 win over Tarleton State on March 7, snapping the Texans' 10-game win streak which was the second-longest win streak in the nation at the time. The Wolverines then defeated Abilene Christian, 74-67, on March 9 in Abilene, snapping the Wildcats' seven-game win streak.
   
• With 16 wins this season, head coach Todd Phillips has won more games than any first-year head coach in Utah Valley's full Division I status era. He also has the best KenPom rating (164) for a first-year head coach in program history. UVU became a full Division I member in 2009 after a seven-year provisional period. Mark Pope won 12 games during his first season (2015-16) and Mark Madsen won 11 games in his first season (2019-20) with the squad.
   
• Ethan Potter has led UVU over its past 11 games, averaging 14.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game, including his career-high 22-point, 15-rebound performance in the 63-60 win at Tarleton State on Thursday night. Prior to his break-out 15-point game at SFA on Feb. 1, Potter was averaging 2.2 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 0.3 blocks per game.
   
• Jaden McClanahan and Drake Allen have each dished out a career-high 11 assists in a game this season. Allen and McClanahan are two of only four players in the WAC to record 10 or more assists in a single game this season. The UVU guards are the only two players in the WAC this season to record 10 or more assists in multiple games this season. McClanahan ranks first and Allen second in the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.30 and 2.14, respectively. Allen ranks second in the WAC in assists at 4.28 per game.
   
• Trevin Dorius matched a career-high with five blocks against UT Arlington on March 2. He also had five swats against WAC leader Grand Canyon on Feb. 3. The five blocks games are tied for the second most blocks pulled down in a single game this season in the WAC. Dorius ranks second the WAC in blocks at 1.81 swats per game.
   
• As a team, Utah Valley leads the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.23. Jaden McClanahan leads WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.30, while Drake Allen ranks second at 2.14. UVU also ranks second in assists per game at 15.10. Trevin Dorius ranks fifth in the WAC in rebounding at 7.77 boards a game. Dorius is also ranks third in offensive boards per game at 2.97.
   
• Utah Valley used its eight different starting lineup this season on Feb. 10 against Abilene Christian. The Wolverines have now used the same starting lineup in the team's last five games, all of which have resulted in victories. UVU has used the same starting lineup of Drake Allen, Tanner Toolson, Jaden McClanahan, Ethan Potter, and Trevin Dorius for eight straight games, winning seven of those eight contests.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Wednesday night's WAC Tournament game against California Baptist will be broadcast live on ESPN+.  The game will also be broadcast over the air waves in Utah County with Jim McCulloch and Josh Kallunki on the call. The radio broadcast will be aired live on ESPN 960 AM radio with a live stream available at ESPN960sports.com. Brice Larson will host the pregame/halftime/postgame show for the game on ESPN 960 AM. 

UTAH VALLEY'S WAC TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Utah Valley makes its 10th appearance at the WAC Tournament this week. Coach Todd Phillips makes his first appearance at the event. The Wolverines hold an all-time 6-9 record at the tournament. UVU has the No. 5 seed for the second time and holds a 0-1 record when holding the No. 5 seed at the tourney. Utah Valley has made it to the semifinals of the tournament in five of the previous six tournaments. UVU has never made it to the tournament's championship game. Wednesday's game against California Baptist will mark the first time UVU has played in a first round non-quarterfinal game. 

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE LANCERS|
Utah Valley and California Baptist will meet for the 12th time on the basketball hardwood on Thursday night. The Wolverines hold an all-time 9-3 advantage in the series. UVU has won five straight over the Lancers, including seven of the last eight. UVU took both games in the two-game series this season, taking a 65-58 win in Orem and a 69-46 win in Riverside. Wednesday's game will mark the first time the two teams have met at the WAC Tournament.

LAST TIME vs. CBU: UTAH VALLEY 69, CALIFORNIA BAPTIST 46 (2/15/24 - Riverside)
Drake Allen scored a game-high 19 points and Trevin Dorius pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds to lead Utah Valley to a 69-46 road win over California Baptist on Feb. 15 at the Fowler Events Center in Riverside, California. 

UTAH VALLEY FINISHES IN A TIE FOR FOURTH IN WAC STANDINGS
Utah Valley finished regular season play by winning seven of its last eight games, including a Texas road sweep of Tarleton State and Abilene Christian in the team's final two games of the season last week. Utah Valley finishes in a tie for fourth in the WAC standings with an 11-9 record, marking a third time ithe last four seasons that the Wolverines have finished in the top four of the league standings. 

STREAK STOPPERS
Utah Valley snapped two significant win streaks on the road last week in Texas. Utah Valley picked up a 63-60 win over Tarleton State on March 7, snapping the Texans' 10-game win streak which was the second-longest win streak in the nation at the time. The Wolverines then defeated Abilene Christian, 74-67, on March 9 in Abilene, snapping the Wildcats' seven-game win streak. 

PHILLIPS BECOMES THE WINNINGEST FIRST-YEAR HEAD COACH IN UVU'S FULL STATUS DIVISION I ERA
With his 16 wins in regular season play this season, Utah Valley head coach Todd Phillips has become the winningest first-year head coach in UVU's full status Division I program history. Phillips breaks the previous wins mark of 12 wins set during the 2015-16 season be then head coach Mark Pope. Mark Madsen has 11 wins in his first season in 2019-20. Phillips also wrapped up WAC play with the most league wins by a first-year head coach in UVU history with 11, breaking the previous record of six by Pope in 2015-16. He is the first coach in UVU history to finish WAC play with a winning record. The team's tie for fourth place in the WAC standings is the highest finish by a first-year coach in program history. The first-year head coach also holds the best KenPom (164) and NCAA NetRating (165) by a first-year head coach in UVU history. UVU held provisional NCAA Division I status from 2003-2008 and became a full status Division I member in 2009.

THE EMERGENCE OF ETHAN POTTER
Prior to the game at Stephen F. Austin on Feb. 1, Ethan Potter was averaging 2.2 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 0.3 blocks per game. His best game was an eight-point, 5-rebound performance in a 87-52 win over Division II Western Colorado. In the loss at SFA on Feb. 1, Potter scored 15 points and pulled down seven rebounds. In Utah Valley's last 11 games, Potter leads UVU, averaging 14.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, 0.8 assists, and 0.5 steals per game. He is shooting 59.5% (69-116) from the field. Potter most recently had his first career double-double with a career-high 22 points and a career-high 15 rebounds in UVU's 63-60 comeback win at Tarleton State on March 7.

OSIRIS GRADY NAMED TO WAC ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Utah Valley freshman forward Osiris Grady has been named to the All-WAC Freshman team as voted on by the league's head coaches, the WAC office announced on Monday. Grady played in 31 games and made five starts for Utah Valley this season. He averages 4.5 points and 2.9 rebounds per game in 14.7 minutes a game. Grady has shot 54.1% (53-98) from the field. He also has 16 assists, 12 blocks, and 11 steals this season. The Las Vegas native scored a season-high 16 points against Liberty on Dec. 20. He also pulled down a season-best nine rebounds against Carroll on Nov. 6.