Jan. 22, 2008

Final Stats

OREM, UTAH - North Carolina Central University could not recover from a slow start as Utah Valley University cruised to a 68-52 victory over the first-year Division I Eagles inside The McKay Center in Orem, Utah.

UVU scored the first eight points of the game, while the visiting Eagles struggled to find the mark from the field. NCCU's first points came on a layup by Tremain Holloway at the 15:15 mark.

The Wolverines extended the lead to 23-2 on a basket by Jordan Brady at 11:02, marking their largest advantage of the first half.

NCCU junior guard Philip Branch provided a lift off the bench with nine points on three long-range triples, including one at the first half buzzer to narrow the deficit to 36-21 at the break.

UVU blistered the nets in the opening 20 minutes, connecting on 51.7 percent (15-for-29) of its field goal attempts. NCCU connected on only eight of its 26 field goals (30.8 percent) in the first half.

The second stanza was more of the same, with NCCU hitting just 37.0 percent from the field (10-of-27), including 3-for-13 shooting from three-point land (23.1 percent).

The Eagles did manage to battle back from a 28-point deficit (64-36 at 8:34) to make the final score a 16-point margin by turning up the defensive pressure and making shots down the stretch.

UVU junior Ryan Toolson scored a game-high 24 points, while senior Jordan Brady contributed 14 points and a game-high nine rebounds for the Wolverines (8-13).

Branch topped the Eagles with 15 points on 5-for-10 shooting from beyond the arch. Senior forward Charles Futrell collected 14 points and a team-best seven boards, while Bryan Ayala added 10 points for NCCU (1-23).

NCCU returns to the hardwood in eight days to play Coppin State University in Baltimore, Md. on Jan. 30.