Men’s basketball breaks even
Dave Iba/UVU Review
The men’s basketball team just finished a four game road trip with stops in Bakersfield, CA, Minneapolis, MN, and Mobile, AL. The Wolverines have not performed well on the road in the past and it seems that the pattern has continued so far this season. UVU returns from their most recent road trip with a record of 1-3.
The Wolverines however did manage to pull out a victory at home against Northern New Mexico, evening their overall record at 3-3.
The first stop on the road trip ended in a loss for the visiting Wolverines as they dropped a match with the Roadrunners of Cal-state Bakersfield, 58-51.
UVU got out to a hot start leading by as many as nine in the first half. Going into the break the wolverines enjoyed a three-point advantage but they couldn’t hold on after Bakersfield took the lead late in the second half.
“Our effort started strong and we were active, but you have to give Bakersfield a lot of credit. They took it away from us and they brought a lot of energy down the stretch. We weren’t competitive enough and have enough fight in the final minutes,” said Wolverines head coach Dick Hunsaker following the defeat.
The next match came against the University of Minnesota, who at the time was ranked eighteenth in the country. The Wolverines out rebounded the Golden Gophers 34-29, and out shot them 45 percent to 42 percent, but UVU turned the ball over 26 times, destroying all hopes of an upset.
UVU then went to Mobile, AL for the South Alabama Thanksgiving Classic where they dropped their first game to Georgia State. Although they began the classic with a loss, the Wolverines were able to capture their first road win of the year against Alcorn State.
After a long road trip there is no place like home and the Wolverines made that evident as six players scored in double figures and they rolled up on Northern New Mexico, 78-55.
As of Dec. 4 the Wolverines of Utah Valley post an overall record of 3-3 with four of their next five contests to be held at the Mckay Events Center.