Utah Valley drops to 12-4 overall and 2-1 in WAC play, while Abilene Christian improves to 9-6 overall and 1-1 in league action.

After trailing 4-3 early, Hendricks scored on a drive and Noah Taitz capped a 7-0 Utah Valley run with a three-pointer to give the Wolverines a 10-4 lead five minutes into the game. UVU continued to lead 15-9 at the 13:17 mark, but a 7-1 Abilene Christian run tied the game at 16-16 with 11:45 remaining in the half.

The score remained tied at 22-22 before the Wildcats used a 6-1 spurt over the next 2:35 to take a 28-23 lead with seven minutes to play. Abilene Christian held a five-point advantage, 35-30, with three minutes left and carried a 41-36 lead into halftime.

Abilene Christian maintained its five-point cushion early in the second half, leading 49-44 at the 15:20 mark. A Hayden Welling dunk trimmed the deficit to four, 53-49, with 12 minutes remaining, but the Wildcats answered with an 11-2 run over the next 3:10 to push the lead to 64-51 with 8:51 to play.

The two teams traded three-pointers over the next several minutes, but Abilene Christian continued to build its lead, extending it to 78-59 following an 8-2 run with 2:56 remaining. Utah Valley outscored the Wildcats 9-7 down the stretch, but ACU closed out the 85-68 win.

Hendricks finished 6-of-10 from the field, including 3-of-6 from three-point range, and added five rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Holcombe connected on 4-of-8 shots and 4-of-5 from the free-throw line, while also recording six assists, three rebounds, and two steals.

Taitz scored nine points, all from beyond the arc, while Welling added eight points. Trevan Leonhardt and Isaac Davis chipped in seven points apiece.

Utah Valley shot 51.1 percent (24-of-47) from the field and 42.1 percent (8-of-19) from three-point range. Abilene Christian shot 54.0 percent (34-of-63) overall and 38.5 percent (5-of-13) from deep.

The Wolverines held a 29-27 rebounding edge, but the Wildcats outscored UVU 46-32 in the paint. Utah Valley committed 22 turnovers, which Abilene Christian converted into 21 points.

Utah Valley returns to Orem to begin a three-game homestand at the UCCU Center, hosting Southern Utah on Thursday, Jan. 8. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

Women’s basketball edges Abilene Christian, 69-67

Utah Valley defeated Abilene Christian on Saturday afternoon, hanging on for a two-point win at the UCCU Center.

Kylee Mabry led UVU (9-5, 2-1) with a career-high 23 points, shooting 8-for-12 from the field and a career-best 5-for-7 from 3-point range. Fellow guard Amanda Barcello added a season-high 23 points, going 8-for-13 from the floor and 6-for-9 from deep.

The Wolverines shot a season-best 56% from the field, tying for the 10th-best mark all-time against a Division I opponent. Cambree Blackham finished with eight points, six assists and four steals while playing a career-high 37 minutes.

Trailing by nine, Abilene Christian made a late run and pulled within one at 68-67 after Meredith Mayes made the first of two free throws with 23 seconds left. The second attempt was missed, and Kaylee Headrick secured the rebound. Headrick came up with another key rebound in the final seconds after the Wildcats’ Payton Hull missed the go-ahead jumper with four seconds left.

“That was a great game today between two quality teams. I was proud of our team for responding every time they fought back,” said UVU head coach Dan Nielson. “I thought we were aggressive offensively against their pressure, and Amanda and Kylie were able to hit some big shots. ACU is a very good offensive team, and I thought we had some great stretches of forcing them to work for quality shots. I’m excited about the win, and hopefully it helps us build some momentum as we get deeper into the conference.”

Barcello scored five points in the opening five minutes and finished the first quarter with 11. After Abilene Christian took a 14-11 lead, UVU tied the game on a three-point play by Barcello. The Wildcats led 20-17 in the final seconds of the quarter when Natalia Chavez fouled Blackham in the backcourt. Blackham made both free throws to cut the deficit to 20-19.

The Wolverines took their first lead at 24-22 when Barcello drained a wing 3 and was fouled, later completing the four-point play. Mabry sparked a second-quarter run with a steal that led to a fast-break layup. She scored 15 of her 23 points in the period, hitting three of her four 3-pointers in the quarter. Meredith Mayes cut the UVU lead to one at 28-27 with 3:21 remaining in the half, but Mabry caught fire, pushing the lead to 10 with three triples to make it 37-27 with 1:08 left. Abilene Christian committed eight turnovers in the second quarter, which Utah Valley converted into 10 points. The Wolverines took a 41-31 lead into halftime.

The Wildcats trimmed the deficit to 41-36 with 8:17 left in the third quarter, but back-to-back trips to the free-throw line pushed the lead back to nine, with Blackham and Tessa Chaney each making a pair. Barcello later hit a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 48-38.

Barcello connected on her fifth 3 of the game before Mabry added a jumper in the paint. Kaylee Headrick finished with five points and five rebounds, and her layup helped give UVU a 10-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Utah Valley knocked down 11 3-pointers in the game, one shy of its season high of 12 set against Pepperdine in November.

The Wolverines (9-5 overall, 2-1 WAC) will open a three-game road trip next week with a trip to Southern Utah on Thursday, Jan. 8 at 6:30 p.m. MT before renewing the Old Hammer Rivalry on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 2:00 p.m. MT against Utah Tech.