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UVU men’s basketball survives wild game against NMSU

By Jared Lloyd - | Jan 28, 2023
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UVU sophomore center Aziz Bandaogo shoots a shot during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU sophomore center Aziz Bandaogo has his alley-oop dunk attempt deflected during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU senior guard Blaze Nield shoots a shot during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU junior guard Le'Tre Darthard gets fouled as he drives to the basket during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU senior forward Tim Fuller scores a layup during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU senior guard Blaze Nield drives the baseline during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU senior guard Tahj Small gets fouled as he goes to the basket during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU sophomore center Aziz Bandaogo wins the jump ball during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU junior Le'Tre Darthard (left) and senior Tahj Small walk onto the court wearing the special "Devil Bears" jerseys for the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.
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UVU head coach Mark Madsen directs his team during the WAC game against New Mexico State at the UCCU Center in Orem on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2023.

Early in Saturday’s WAC battle against New Mexico State, it looked like the UVU men’s basketball team was going to give head coach Mark Madsen a very nice birthday present.

The Aggies, however, weren’t exactly just happy to be there for the party.

The Wolverines were dominant in the first few minutes of the game, overwhelming an NMSU team that appeared disjointed with a 24-3 run. But the Aggies rallied and by early in the second half, UVU’s lead was gone and the Wolverines were in a dogfight.

“You knew that New Mexico State has no quit in them, so you knew the run was going to come,” Madsen said. “They came back and took the lead early in the second half and from there it was back-and-forth..”

Behind 15 second-half points from junior Justin Harmon and six straight to close out the game from junior Le’Tre Darthard, UVU managed to fend off every New Mexico State rally and secured the 77-72 win.

“When we first started, we were locked in,” Harmon said. “But like any good team, they were going to make a run. Down the stretch, it was like you were either going to put up or shut up. And we put up because we had to. We weren’t going to lose two in a row. Good teams don’t lose two in a row and we are a great team.”

It was a special game for Harmon, since he had some very personal connections to a trio of the visiting Aggies.

“It was a personal game for me,” Harmon said. “Now I get to have some bragging rights when I go home. It was really fun, the whole game. With basketball when you are playing against some close friends, it brings it up like 10 levels. It’s just special because I didn’t really get to play against my best friend growing up because we always played on the same team. I was playing against him now and I’ve got to beat him because I need that WAC championship. It’s fun, but it’s very different too.”

Madsen said that Harmon’s performance was a vital component of the Wolverines finding a way to win.

“I thought Justin gave us a huge spark, especially in the second half,” Madsen said. “You can’t measure the size of someone’s heart but Justin has a huge heart. He loves his teammates and he’s made big plays for UVU ever since he got here. He’s made for big moments.”

For his part, Harmon credited UVU senior Trey Woodbury for making sure the team didn’t lose its concentration when the Aggies came storming back.

“We have a great leader in Trey,” Harmon said. “He brought us all together and said, ‘come on, we’ve got to win.’ We listened because we trust him. Everybody followed him and it was just up from there.”

New Mexico State took its last lead of the game when it went up 59-57 with just over nine minutes left. Although the home team never trailed again, the Wolverines couldn’t get much breathing room.

UVU went on a 12-4 run, capped by a thunderous dunk from sophomore center Aziz Bandaogo, to build a 69-63 lead — only to see the Aggies respond five of the next seven points to again make it a one-possession game.

That was when Darthard came up big, making a driving layup to push the lead to five.

After NMSU scored back-to-back layups to get to within one with 10 seconds left, Darthard calmly drilled two free throws to extend the UVU advantage.

The Wolverines fouled to prevent a game-tying 3-pointer and the Aggies missed the front end of a one-and-one. Darthard was fouled one final time and he closed out the win with two more makes from the charity stripe.

“I was proud of the Le’Tre Darthard,” Madsen said. “He was just an absolute machine on the court on both ends, defense and offense. The 4-for-4 throws down the stretch helped us win the game.”

Harmon ended up with 17 points to lead another balanced scoring effort for UVU. The Wolverines also got 16 points, 15 rebounds and four blocks from Bandaogo, 15 points and nine rebounds from Woodbury and 15 points from Darthard.

New Mexico State was led by 23 points from sophomore Anthony Roy, who drilled five 3-pointers.

Even though there were tense moments along the way, UVU did end up being able to give Madsen the birthday victory they wanted to get for him.

“With it being Coach’s birthday today, we had to win,” Harmon said. “It was a must win.”

Madsen didn’t say much about it being his birthday but explained that “basketball has huge importance” and that his life revolves around “faith, family and caring about people.” He that he would enjoy all of those things on Saturday.

“Sometimes in the intensity of moments, in the importance of what we’re trying to accomplish as a team, it’s important to step back and remember that I dedicate everything to my family and to basically these players,” Madsen said. “That’s my life, my family and these players. That’s what I put everything into. When you do have a tough loss, everyone takes it hard — but you’ve got to bounce back. Today I’m happy that our players made so many great plays. It’s a great team win and now I get to go home and spend time with my family.”

UVU (17-6, 8-2) now prepare for another in-state game as it heads to St. George to face Utah Tech on Feb. 2. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. MT.

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