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Utah Valley University Athletics

Home of the Utah Valley University Wolverines
Dominick Nelson GCU
Darryl Webb
57
Utah Valley UVU 15-7,7-1 WAC
75
Winner Grand Canyon GCU 17-5,7-1 WAC
Utah Valley UVU
15-7,7-1 WAC
57
Final
75
Grand Canyon GCU
17-5,7-1 WAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Utah Valley UVU 24 33 57
Grand Canyon GCU 37 38 75

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History

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Wolverines' 10-Game Streak Ends in 75-57 Setback at Grand Canyon

PHOENIX – Dominick Nelson scored 16 points, and Osiris Grady added 12, but Utah Valley saw its 10-game win streak come to an end with a 75-57 road loss to Grand Canyon on Saturday night at the Global Credit Union Arena.

Utah Valley (15-7, 7-1) drops into a tie with Grand Canyon (17-5, 7-1) for first place in the WAC standings. The two teams split the regular-season series, with each defending its home court.

"I thought Grand Canyon played great tonight," said Utah Valley head coach Todd Phillips. "They fed off the crowd, had a lot of energy, and we never really got into the flow of the game. Offensively, we struggled—we only had nine assists, which is not good for us."

UVU trailed by just two, 17-15, with 9:49 remaining in the first half before GCU used a 14-2 run over the next seven minutes to push its lead to 31-17. The Wolverines were only able to get as close as 12 points with 13:25 remaining in the second half but couldn't cut the deficit to single digits the rest of the way as the Lopes secured the win.

"The big thing we talked about with the guys is that they won the paint battle," Phillips said. "They beat us in the paint, and that was a big one for us. I also thought they got to more 50-50 balls. When you struggle offensively, it kind of compounds itself—your defense isn't as good, and it snowballs."

Nelson led UVU with 16 points on 5-of-14 shooting and a 6-of-7 mark at the free-throw line. He also recorded three rebounds, three assists, and a block in 35 minutes. Grady finished with 12 points on 6-of-11 shooting, adding four rebounds and an assist.

Carter Welling contributed seven points, four rebounds, and two blocks, while Noah Taitz came off the bench to score six points, knocking down both of his three-point attempts.

Utah Valley shot a season-low 32.8% (21-of-64) from the field, including just 22.2% (4-of-18) from three. Grand Canyon finished at 47.6% (30-of-63) overall and 23.5% (4-of-17) from beyond the arc. The Lopes outscored the Wolverines 46-32 in the paint and held a 42-33 rebounding advantage.

Despite trailing by double digits for much of the game, Phillips felt UVU had an opportunity to make a push late.

"We were down 12, and I thought we could make a little spurt there with about 13 minutes left," Phillips said. "Then we just had a couple of breakdowns, turned the ball over, gave them an easy basket, and away it goes."

How It Happened
First Half
Grand Canyon jumped out to a 6-4 lead in the first four minutes and extended it to 12-6 with a 6-2 spurt. UVU responded with a 9-5 run, cutting the deficit to two, 17-15, with 9:49 left in the half. GCU then rattled off nine unanswered points as part of a 14-2 run, extending its lead to 31-17 with 2:49 to go. UVU closed the half with a slight 7-6 edge over the final 3:34 but trailed 37-24 at the break.

Second Half
GCU opened the second half by outscoring UVU 11-10 over the first five minutes, stretching its lead to 14, 48-34. UVU briefly trimmed the margin to 12, 51-39, with 13:24 remaining, but the Lopes responded with an 11-4 run to take their largest lead of the game at 62-43 with 9:13 to play. The teams played evenly down the stretch as GCU closed out the win.

Up Next
Utah Valley returns to Orem for a two-game homestand, beginning with UT Arlington (11-11, 4-4) on Thursday at 6 p.m. MT at the UCCU Center. The Wolverines will then host Tarleton State (10-13, 5-3) on Saturday at 2 p.m.

"The big thing is when we beat them (GCU) at our place, they went home, learned, and got way better," Phillips said. "We've got to do the same thing. We've got a team coming in that's won four straight and is playing really hot. In this league, every night's a battle, so we've got to be ready to go."

Both games will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and the Wolverine Sports Network on ESPN The Fan (103.9 FM/98.3 FM/960 AM).
 
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Players Mentioned

Osiris Grady

#12 Osiris Grady

F
6' 9"
Sophomore
Carter Welling

#22 Carter Welling

F
6' 10"
Sophomore
Dominick Nelson

#0 Dominick Nelson

G
6' 5"
Junior
Noah Taitz

#7 Noah Taitz

G
6' 4"
Redshirt Senior

Players Mentioned

Osiris Grady

#12 Osiris Grady

6' 9"
Sophomore
F
Carter Welling

#22 Carter Welling

6' 10"
Sophomore
F
Dominick Nelson

#0 Dominick Nelson

6' 5"
Junior
G
Noah Taitz

#7 Noah Taitz

6' 4"
Redshirt Senior
G

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