The UVU men’s basketball team appeared to have some things figured out heading into the 2024 WAC tournament.

The Wolverines had won seven of their last eight games, going a game above .500 at 16-15 and earning the No. 5 seed.

Meanwhile, their opponent — No. 8-seed Cal Baptist — was headed the opposite direction.

A promising season for the Lancers had become frustrating as CBU lost eight of its final nine games of the regular season and dropped below .500 at 15-16.

But the postseason is a different animal, a brand-new start where everyone is giving everything they’ve got to keep playing. The past is only marginally relevant.

And when the game is on the line, every moment is magnified.

That was the situation UVU found itself in late in the first round of the tournament Wednesday evening at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.

The Wolverines, who trailed most of the game, trailed by two but had the ball with under 10 seconds to play.

UVU junior Drake Allen had the ball in his hands and as the time ticked down he drove toward the basket, getting fouled in the process.

With 3.8 seconds left, he stepped up to the line with all the pressure in the world on his shoulders.

It was fitting that it would be Allen, since he had knocked down a pair of huge 3-pointers to help the Wolverines overcome a 12-point second-half deficit to get to that position.

Allen, who is just a 62% free throw shooter on the season, set his feet and fired, getting the first one to roll in.

After the Lancers used their final timeout in an attempt to ice him, the Wolverine junior put the ball up softly and again got the bounce he needed to tie the game and force overtime.

In the extra period, however, it was CBU who made the key plays.

The Lancers won the jump ball and immediately scored to take, then stymied the Wolverine offense. CBU scored the first nine points of overtime and never looked back, ending UVU’s tournament with the 74-63 win.

The Wolverines got a huge game from sophomore Ethan Potter, who finished with a career-high 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting. Allen ended up with 17, while junior Caleb Stone-Carrawell added 10 points. UVU senior center Trevin Dorius ended up with eight points and 11 rebounds.

The Lancers were led by 21 points from guard Blondeau Tchoukuiegno.

The Wolverines likely saw their season come to an end with the loss. Even though it wasn’t the ending UVU wanted, there were still positives to take from the 2023-24 campaign.

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.

The Wolverines also have the majority of their team eligible to return, with just Dorius, senior Jaden McClanahan and senior Cache Field set to conclude their time in Orem.

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