BOWLING GREEN, Ohio—Utah Valley continues its December road swing on Saturday, traveling east to face Bowling Green at the Stroh Center. Tipoff is set for 11 a.m. MT/1 p.m. ET, with streaming available on ESPN+ and radio coverage on the Wolverine Sports Network/ESPN The Fan.
The Wolverines (5–3) enter the matchup looking to bounce back from Wednesday's 77–66 loss at San Diego State, a game in which UVU trimmed a 14-point first-half deficit to one at the break and later pulled within 67–64 in the closing minutes before the Aztecs closed on a 10–2 run. Jackson Holcombe posted his fourth double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Tyler Hendricks knocked down five threes and finished with 15 points. Hayden Welling added 14 points and Trevan Leonhardt totaled 13 points, five boards, and five assists.
Utah Valley continues to rank among the nation's most efficient teams statistically. The Wolverines enter the week inside the top 30 nationally in effective field goal percentage (.584), assists per game (19.9), blocks per game (6.1) and steals per game (9.9). UVU also ranks 16th in field goal percentage (.519), 25th in scoring defense (64.6 ppg allowed), 27th in scoring margin (+18.8) and 69th in three-point percentage (.371). Individually, Hendricks ranks second nationally in three-point percentage (.595), Holcombe sits 14th in double-doubles and 33rd in steals per game, and Leonhardt is 22nd nationally in assists per game (6.1) while leading the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio.
In the latest NCAA NET rankings released this week, Utah Valley checks in at No. 84, third-highest among Division I programs in Utah behind BYU and Utah State. UVU also owns the top NET ranking among current WAC members—California Baptist, Southern Utah, Utah Tech, UT Arlington, Tarleton State and Abilene Christian.
Bowling Green (6–2) returns home riding a three-game winning streak that includes an impressive 82–66 road victory over Kansas State. The Falcons are off to their best start since 2020–21 and enter Saturday with the highest NET ranking in program history at No. 59, setting up the strongest NET matchup ever hosted inside the Stroh Center. BGSU has been one of the nation's most disruptive defensive teams through eight games, ranking top six nationally in steals per game (12.1), turnovers forced per game (18.6) and turnover margin (+6.4). Offensively, the Falcons average 85.1 points per game and have had four different players record 20-point outings this season.
The Wolverines and Falcons will meet for the first time on Saturday. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and on the radio airwaves on ESPN The Fan with Jim McCulloch on the call.
