Wolverines Make Statement, Utah Tech Makes a Jump in Weekly Power Rankings
Utah Valley passed Statement Week with an A; and Utah Tech got off to another 2-0 start in WAC play.
Opening league play with three straight home games is always nice. This is even more true when you haven’t lost at home all season.
Add in that you get two of the top teams in the WAC as part of that 3-game stretch, and it makes it even more valuable.
It was Statement Week in Orem, and Utah Valley passed with flying colors. Dom Nelson averaged 18 points and 7.5 rebounds to help the Wolverines win over GCU and CBU, thrusting Utah Valley to the top of the leaderboard.
Along with the Wolverines’ big week, Utah Tech also had a huge week at Burns Arena, winning a pair of games in a much different fashion to open up WAC play 2-0, and taking a big leap up in this week’s WAC Hoops Power Rankings.
Let’s take a look.
1 - Utah Valley
It’s hard not to have the Wolverines move above both GCU and CBU after two weeks behind both the Lopes and Lancers, especially considering the Wolverines beat both the Lopes and the Lancers.
Dom Nelson was terrific. Utah Valley’s defense stifled a really good GCU squad and led for nearly 27 minutes on Thursday. And then against CBU on Saturday, the Wolverines had a bit of a hangover before pulling the win out late at the UCCU Center.
The Wolverines will travel to UT Arlington on Thursday before returning home to host rival Utah Tech on Saturday.
2 - GCU
The Lopes don’t drop too much considering their lone game came at Utah Valley on Thursday.
Tyon Grant-Foster was good against the Wolverines, but other key role players struggled.
The good news for the Lopes is they get a pair of home games this week, hosting ACU on Thursday and Tarleton on Saturday.
Don’t be surprised if both of these games get ugly fast as GCU has some payback from the 2024 road trip to West Texas that nearly cost them an outright regular season title.
3 - California Baptist
‘But Kyle, the Lancers lost at Utah Valley. Shouldn’t they move lower?’
No.
CBU held its own in Orem and had the Wolverines on the ropes. Dom Daniels Jr. is special. AJ Braun is playing better. And the Lancers are playing some good basketball.
However, it is an extremely challenging week for Rick Croy’s squad. CBU takes the daunting West Texas road trip to face Tarleton on Thursday and ACU on Saturday.
4 - Utah Tech
Yep, be surprised all you want. But, Utah Tech jumped five spots after knocking off UT Arlington and Tarleton at Burns Arena this past week.
Jon Judkins’ team won in very different ways. It shot the lights out against the Mavericks and then played a defensive slugfest against Tarleton.
Noa Gonsalves and Hakim Byrd went off against UT Arlington. And then against Tarleton, it was Beon Riley’s jumper that led the Trailblazers to a 2-0 start in WAC play.
We will see if Utah Tech can keep it going with a trip to Seattle on Thursday and a trip to Utah Valley on Saturday.

5 - Tarleton State
A split of the trip to the southern end of the Beehive state is not something to be disappointed about. Winning in Cedar City or St. George is a challenge.
The Texans got it done at America First Events Center on Thursday night courtesy of a big offensive night for Keitenn Bristow, who finished with 24 points and seven rebounds in the win.
Two nights later, Tarleton State did exactly what it wanted to do: shut down the Utah Tech perimeter. But the Texans came up just short in their quest to improve to 3-0 in WAC play.
The Texans have an interesting week. They host CBU on Thursday before flying to Phoenix to take on GCU on Saturday.
6 - Seattle U
“How do the Redhawks not move up after a win?”
First, the win came in comeback fashion against Abilene Christian, who is winless in WAC play.
Second, Seattle U needed a game-winning bucket against that same Abilene Christian squad to win the game.
Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe is a stud, finishing with 23 points and 11 rebounds in the win to earn WAC Player and Newcomer of the Week

But, the guard play is a bit concerning. John Christofilis hit some big 3’s in the 2nd half but the guards looked overwhelmed at times.
One thing to come from Saturday’s win is that the Redhawks finally won a close game, which head coach Chris Victor said was huge for this squad. Seattle U hosts Utah Tech on Thursday and Southern Utah on Saturday, both at Redhawk Center.
7 - Southern Utah
Is there potential in Cedar City to finish at the top of the WAC? Yes.
Are there issues with consistency in Cedar City? Yes.
Perhaps it is due to injury, or perhaps it is due to adjusting to the changing styles of play in the WAC.
Whatever it is, Rob Jeter’s crew hasn’t had a consistent night in WAC play, yet. Sitting at 1-2, this Southern Utah squad is better than its record in the WAC. The good news is the T-Birds stopped a 6-game losing streak with a win over UT Arlington. The bad news is that the Tarleton guards made the SUU guards look bad in the loss on Thursday.
And things don’t get any easier for the T-Birds who go to Seattle U on Saturday before hosting GCU next Thursday.

8 - UT Arlington
I’m not sure that anyone had UT Arlington sitting at 0-3 in WAC play up to this point.
But, that is where the Mavs sit. The Mavs are living and dying by the 3. Unfortunately, the struggle lies more on the defensive end than anything else.
In the loss to Utah Tech, the Mavs allowed the Trailblazers to hit 15 3-pointers. In the loss to Southern Utah, the Mavs allowed the T-Birds to shoot 60 percent from the field in the first half and 52 percent for the game.
There is some good news for the Mavs. They finally get to play a league game at home on Thursday. UT Arlington hosts league-leading Utah Valley after playing the first three games of WAC play on the road.
9 - Abilene Christian
When or If the ACU guards decide to hit some shots and score points, the Wildcats could be dangerous.
Unfortunately, outside of Quion Williams, Brette Tanner is not getting ANY production out of his guards…at least in the first two games of WAC play.
And things don’t get any easier because ACU goes to GCU on Thursday and then returns home to host California Baptist on Saturday.