ABILENE — In another game that came down to the wire, the Wildcats came up just short to the league-leading Utah Valley Wolverines on Senior Night. It was a defensive slugfest with ACU forcing 11 first half turnover and holding the 31-28 advantage heading into halftime. UVU picked up their offensive pace in the second half and were able to take the lead before the Wildcats came back to tie the game late. A couple late turnovers haunted the Wildcats while the Wolverines made clutch buckets to close out the game with a 66-62 win.
Key Plays
- Immanuel Allen was back in the starting lineup and scored seven of the first nine points for ACU. He hit a three to put the team up 9-1 through three and a half minutes of action.
- Airion Simmons hit a three at the 15-minute mark of the first half to surpass 1,000 career points.
- Ja'Sean Jackson hit a jumper to put the Wildcats up 20-12 with just under 11 minutes to play in the first half.
- Simmons hit a three at the 8:43 mark of the first half to give ACU their largest lead of the game, 25-16.
- UVU made it a one-point game with 43 seconds to go in the first half and Simmons answered with a jumper to send the Wildcats to the break with a 31-28 lead.
- After the Wolverines opened the half on an 11-5 run, Damien Daniels hit a three from the corner to tie the game at 39-all.
- A three from Cameron Steele cut the UVU lead to one, 52-51, with 7:28 to play.
- Just a few plays later, Jackson hit a three to regain the lead for ACU, 54-52.
- After UVU got back-to-back buckets to take a 62-58 lead with 1:38 to play, the Wildcats turned the ball over on consecutive possessions allowing the Wolverines to push their lead to six.
- Allen hit a wild three and drew a foul, converting the four-point play and cutting the lead to two, but UVU made their free throws to secure the win.
Stat Pack
- Simmons filled up the stat sheet with 13 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals, and a block.
- Allen also tallied 13 points on the night on 5-8 shooting.
- Joe Pleasant was the other Wildcat in double figures with 10 points and pulled down seven boards.
- The Wildcats actually lost the turnover battle with 16 on the night to just 15 forced.
- Tobias Cameron did a little bit of everything on the night with six points, five rebounds and four steals.
Coach Tanner Interview
Up Next
The Wildcats will head on the road next week for their final regular season game at Sam Houston on Friday, March 3. Tip is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. and it will be streamed on ESPN+.
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