GCU Wins WAC Final, Utah Valley Falls Short Of First NCAA Tournament Bid
Mar 16, 2025, 1:22 AM | Updated: 1:24 am
Photo by Tanner Tripp, KSL Sports.
LAS VEGAS- The Utah Valley Wolverines are currently on one of the most historic runs in their program’s history as before tonight, they had won 20 of their last 21 games dating back to December 18 of last year.
Their dominant play in the WAC earned them the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament, a position which they defended, already having knocked Utah Tech and Seattle U out of postseason contention in Las Vegas.
Their reward for making it to the championship game? The Grand Canyon Lopes, who are looking to defend their conference tournament title for the third year in a row and return to the NCAA Tournament. The test stands tall, but had the Wolverines been able to take down Grand Canyon, they would have clinched their first-ever March Madness bid as the automatic qualifiers out of the WAC.
CHAMPIONSHIP GAMEDAY presented by Intermountain Health! #GoUVU | #ValleyForged | #WACvegas pic.twitter.com/uILfGg2AC8
— UVU Men’s Basketball (@UVUmbb) March 15, 2025
First Half
After going down 5-0 to open the game, the Wolverines warmed up and got hot from long range. Nearly halfway through the half, Utah Valley was up 19-10. The lead was thanks in part to Tanner Toolson and Trevan Leonhardt who knocked down three three-pointers together during the run.
Utah Valley was unable to extend the lead before Grand Canyon went on a scoring spree of their own. Following going down by 9, the Lopes closed the first half on a 30-14 run, completely flipping the script on the Wolverines.
Grand Canyon led Utah Valley at halftime 40-33. Dominick Nelson settled into the game nicely and ended up scoring a team-high nine points. On the other side, it was Ray Harrison who led the Lopes with 10 points.
Second Half
The second half was a back-and-forth battle in which the Lopes tried to keep Utah Valley at bay.
The Wolverines took their swings, and by the time there were 14 minutes left in the second half, they managed to cut the lead to five, but that was about as close as it would get.
For five minutes, the Lopes and Wolverines traded buckets just about every possession, keeping the margin cemented for that part of the second half.
At the 9:03 mark, Utah Valley cut the lead to three points, putting the game right back in reach, but with the effort expended to climb back, the Wolverines fell short down the stretch.
Over the next seven minutes, Grand Canyon’s lead was back to 12, putting the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament out of reach for Utah Valley.
The Wolverines tried to play the foul game late, but the Lopes remained on top and won the WAC Championship 89-82.
Utah Valley Falls Flat In WAC Final
If you only watched the second half of this game, you would have never thought that Utah Valley was actually the first team to build a lead in this game, but when the Lopes adjusted and countered, the Wolverines seemed timid.
From the 12:21 mark to the 4:29 mark in the second half, a period in which Grand Canyon was vulnerable as they let their lead hover around five, Utah Valley did not attempt a single three-pointer. That’s seven minutes and fifty-two seconds in which the Wolverines were in striking distance but didn’t make a move to close the final gap.
When desperation hit in the last few minutes, Tanner Toolson became the only Wolverine willing to take a big shot, knocking down three three-pointers in the final 2:03 as part of a last-minute push that fell short.
Utah Valley had their chances to get back into this game, but postseason games in March require guys to step up and knock down shots, and For Tanner Toolson, it was simply too little too late.
Toolson ended up scoring a season-high 28 points, knocking down six of his nine three-point attempts in the process. Carter Welling also had a strong showing with 18 points.
1H | Don't leave Tanner Toolson open! ☔️
📺 ESPN2#OneWAC x #WAChoops x #WACvegas pic.twitter.com/4fgYW4VWvE
— The Western Athletic Conference (@WACsports) March 16, 2025
Grand Canyon spread the love, ending the night with six Lopes getting to double-figures on the scoresheet. Ray Harrison was Grand Canyon’s leading scorer with 18.
What’s Next For The Utah Valley Wolverines?
While the WAC will end up being a one-bid league with the Wolverines missing out on the NCAA Tournament, Utah Valley’s season is likely not over. With their regular season WAC title, UVU will automatically qualify for the National Invitational Tournament (NIT).
We’re headed to the NIT 🏀#GoUVU | #ValleyForged pic.twitter.com/FTpGX4L01n
— UVU Men’s Basketball (@UVUmbb) March 16, 2025
