Utah Valley Blows Out Southern Utah For In-State Victory
Jan 6, 2024, 4:25 PM | Updated: Jan 8, 2024, 11:43 am
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Valley men’s basketball team bounced back from a halftime deficit and blew out the visiting, rival Southern Utah Thunderbirds.
UVU takes out SUU with big second half
The Wolverines hosted the Thunderbirds at the UCCU Center in Orem, Utah on Saturday, January 6.
FINAL AT THE UCCU CENTER#GoUVU | #ValleyForged pic.twitter.com/pCZWnptT7B
— UVU Men’s Basketball (@UVUmbb) January 6, 2024
The visiting T-Birds and homecourt Wolverines battled back and forth during the opening 20 minutes of the contest. UVU was the first team to get on the scoreboard and the Wolverines took a 13-6 lead five minutes into the afternoon matchup. During the final 71 seconds of the first half, the Thunderbirds went on an 8-0 run to take a 38-35 lead into the break.
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Somebody wanna guard Zion? 4-point play for Z pic.twitter.com/XK7gpQeu1F
— SUU Men's Basketball (@SUUBasketball) January 6, 2024
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After exiting the locker room, the Wolverines fell into a seven-point hole before cutting into Southern Utah’s advantage.
With 11:51 left in the game, Tanner Toolson hit a free throw to give Utah Valley a 52-51 lead, a lead the Wolverines would maintain throughout the remainder of the contest.
UVU owned a 67-61 lead after SUU’s Braden Housley made a layup with 5:13 to go. Over the final five minutes, the Wolverines closed the game on a 13-1 run to earn their eighth victory this season.
Utah Valley finished the afternoon shooting 45.9 percent overall and 22.2 percent on three-pointers. SUU shot 37.1 percent from the field, including 22.7 from beyond the arc.
Caleb Stone-Carrawell led the Wolverines with 17 points. Zion Young had 17 points for the Thunderbirds.
#25 Caleb Stone-Carrawell with a floater!#GoUVU | #ValleyForged pic.twitter.com/511lBl68Nb
— UVU Men’s Basketball (@UVUmbb) January 6, 2024
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Up Next for Southern Utah men’s basketball
With the loss, the Thunderbirds dropped to a record of 5-10 this season, including 0-4 in Western Athletic Conference games.
— SUU Men's Basketball (@SUUBasketball) January 6, 2024
Southern Utah’s next game is at home against the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks on Saturday, January 13 at 6:30 p.m. (MT). The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
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Up next for UVU men’s basketball
With the win, the Wolverines improved to an 8-7 record this season, including 3-1 in the WAC.
Utah Valley’s next game is on the road against the UT Arlington Mavericks on Thursday, January 11 at 6 p.m. (MT). The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Kyle Ireland is a Sports Producer and Locals in the NFL Insider for sports.ksl.com. He’s also co-host of the Yards After College Podcast. Follow him on Threads (@kyleirelandksl), Instagram (@kyleirelandksl). and X (@kyleireland).
