Le’Tre Darthard scored a season-high 25 points and Trey Woodbury neared a triple-double with 19 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists to lead Utah Valley to an 88-78 win over Long Beach State on Saturday afternoon at the UCCU Center.

Utah Valley evens its record at 4-4 on the season while Long Beach State falls to 4-4 with the loss.

Long Beach State scored six points off four Wolverine turnovers to open the game with an 8-0 lead. Bandaogo and Harmon threw down back-to-back dunks to spark a 21-2 run over the next 6:03 to give UVU a 21-10 lead with 11:29 to play. LBSU got back to within four points, 25-21, with 9:23 remaining in the half but the Wolverines responded with six of the next eight points to extend their lead to eight points, 31-23, with seven minutes to go in the half. The Beach then used a 15-2 run over the next four minutes to take a 38-33 lead with 3:32 left on the clock. Utah Valley outscored LBSU 11-3 over the next two minutes to take a 44-41 lead with 1:17 to go. Long Beach State then scored the final four points, including a layup at the buzzer to take a 45-44 lead into the break.

The Wolverines opened the second half on a 13-5 run over the first seven minutes to take a seven-point 57-50 lead capped off by a Trey Woodbury dunk. UVU held on to its lead over the next nine minutes, 76-68, with 4:23 remaining. The Wolverines then outscored LBSU 12-10 over the final five minutes to secure the 88-78 win.

Darthard scored his 25 points on an 8 of 12 clip from the field, including a career-high seven shots from beyond the arc. He also recorded four rebounds with three assists. The seven threes tie him for fourth on the all-time UVU single game list. He was just two threes shy of the UVU record of nine threes set by Jaden Jackson in 2016.

Bandaogo notched his fourth double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 rebounds. He also had four blocks on the day.

Woodbury neared a triple-double with 19 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists. The senior guard connected on 6 of 11 shots from the floor, including a pair of threes. He was a perfect 5 of 5 from the charity stripe.

Justin Harmon was also in double figures with 19 points to go along with a career-high seven assists, three steals, and a block.

Utah Valley shot 48.4 percent (31-64) from the field with a 36.7 percent (11-30). Long Beach State shot a 40.3 percent (29-72) mark from the field with a 43.8 percent (7-16) mark from long range. The Wolverines had an impressive 24 assists on their 31 made baskets.

Utah Valley now travels down University Parkway for a UCCU CrossTown Clash matchup at BYU on Wednesday, Dec. 7. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Provo.

Women’s hoops drop road contest at Utah State

LOGAN, Utah — Shay Fano had 18 points and 12 rebounds but Utah Valley couldn’t withstand a late run from Utah State and fell 65-55 on Saturday afternoon in the Spectrum. The Wolverines (1-6) were within one, 54-53, with under five minutes to go but the Aggies (3-5) closed the contest on an 11-2 run.

“I’m proud of our effort today. I think we took a step in the right direction,” said UVU head coach Dan Nielson. “If we get a break or two, then maybe the result is different but we competed and did some good things. If we can continue to play cleaner and eliminate some mistakes then we’ll see results start to go our way.”

Jaeden Brown added nine points, eight rebounds and a career-high six blocks while Saige Gibb established a new career high with nine points. Former UVU guard Maria Carvalho led all scorers with 21, including 5-for-6 from three, with 10 points coming in the final quarter.

The Aggies took advantage of early turnovers by the Wolverines and also hit four 3-pointers in the opening quarter to take a 16-9 lead after one. Eight of USU’s points came after nine UVU turnovers in the opening frame.

Both teams struggled to score early in the second before Fano scored to make it 16-11 three minutes into the second, but was whistled for her second foul on the next possession to force her to the bench. The Aggies scored five straight with Carvalho hitting a 3-pointer to extend it to 21-11 before Mae Afoa scored, was fouled and converted the free throw to make it 21-14.

The Wolverines trailed 28-20 when Eleyana Tafisi scored five points on one trip down the court. She buried a 3-pointer and then, after a foul was whistled off the ball while the ball was in the air giving UVU the ball right back, Tafisi scored on a driving layup to make it 28-25. Fano tied it after going 1-for-2 from the line and then scoring inside to cap an 8-0 UVU run. Utah State got two free-throws right before the end of the half to take a 30-28 lead into the break. Fano had nine at the break to lead all scorers.

Brown spurred a 6-2 run to begin the third and give Utah Valley its first lead of the game on a layup with 7:12 left in the quarter, forcing an Aggie timeout. The game was knotted at 34-34 when Fano scored and was fouled for a 3-point play that put UVU back in front.

The third quarter was filled with fouls and trips to the line. The teams were whistled for a combined 19 fouls and shot a total of 25 free throws. Utah State made 8-of-10 while UVU went 10-for-15 from the line and the Aggies held a 46-42 advantage after three.

Carvalho hit two big 3-pointers early in the fourth to push Utah State’s lead to eight, 54-46, with 6:49 to go. Following a Utah Valley timeout, Gibb buried a corner three, Ally Criddle scored after Fano got a steal and fed her on the other end, and Criddle then found Gibb for a fastbreak layup to cut it to one, 54-53. Utah State pulled away with a 9-0 run and got to the line six times during the decisive 11-2 spurt that ended the contest.

Utah Valley outrebounded Utah State, 47-33, and outshot the Aggies overall, but 24 Wolverine turnovers led to 29 points for USU.

The Wolverines will be home for two games next week beginning Wednesday at 6 p.m. against Idaho State. UVU will also welcome Northwest Nazarene on Saturday, Dec. 10 at 2 p.m. in the UCCU Center.

Romero, Bockman shine at Cliff Keen Invitational

LAS VEGAS – No. 5 Demetrius Romero and No. 31 Evan Bockman earned podium spots at the prestigious Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational. Bockman finishes the weekend 6-2 and a fourth-place finish at 197. No. 5 Demetrius Romero placed sixth in the tournament after going 3-0 yesterday and being pulled from matches today as he is still working from his back from last year’s injury.

No. 31 Evan Bockman picked up a victory in the consolation bracket defeating No. 24 Jake Koser (Navy). Bockman jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first period using a takedown and a pair of two-point near falls to take control in his first match of the day to win by a 7-4 decision. Bockman advanced to the third-place match after (HM) Andy Smith (Virginia Tech) took a medical forfeit.

In the third-place match, Bockman met Big 12 foe No. 11 Tanner Sloan (South Dakota State). Sloan entered as the top seed in the tournament at 197. The two tussled to a 0-0 tie heading to the second period. Sloan scored first with an escape from the bottom position to go up 1-0. In the third period, Sloan recorded a two-point near fall taking a 3-0 advantage. Bockman responded with under 30 seconds left with an escape, cutting the deficit to 3-1. Bockman, with under ten seconds left in the final period, scored a two-point takedown with two seconds left in the period to tie the match at 3-3. Sloan accrued over one minute of riding time, giving him one point at the end of the match for a 4-3 victory.

Utah Valley finishes 15th in the team score with 36.5 points in the 33-team field. Nebraska won the tournament for the second consecutive year.

Utah Valley will next compete in the Reno Tournament of Champions on Dec. 18 before heading east to have duals with Purdue, Campbell, and Drexel on Dec. 20. The home opening dual will take place on Jan. 13 at 6:00 p.m. MT against No. 17 Northern Iowa.

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