(St. George, Utah - Feb.12, 2026) - Behind a balanced scoring attack, the Trailblazers won their fifth straight game holding on for a 81-77 victory over Utah Valley on Thursday night at Burns Arena.
Snapping a five-game losing skid against Utah Valley, Utah Tech (15-11, 8-4 WAC) led by 17 at halftime and held on for a four-point victory for the Trailblazers' first win over the Wolverines since Dec. 2, 2023.
Led by 14 points by
Chance Trujillo, the Trailblazers also got double figure contests from
Jusaun Holt (13 points),
Noah Bolanga (13 points),
Tanner Davis (12 points) and
Ethan Potter (11 points).
Potter nearly notched a double-double leading the way with nine rebounds and Bolanga led the team with four steals.
The Trailblazers had their best shooting night from the field since Jan. 1 at Abilene Christian hitting 54.4 percent (31-67) from the field, 47.4 percent (9-19) from three-point range and 62.5 percent (10-16) from the free throw line.
Utah Valley (18-7, 8-4 WAC) was led by 20 points by Jackson Holcombe and got 15 points from Trevan Leonhardt.
The Wolverines also got a 13-point, eight-rebound performance off the bench by Isaac Hawkins and Tyler Hendricks added 12 points.
How It Happened
Leading for the entire 40 minutes, the Trailblazers got off to a quick 13-5 start and pushed their lead to 23-11 after a three-pointer by Bolanga.
An 8-3 run for the Wolverines brought Utah Valley within seven (26-19), but the Trailblazers answered right back with a 9-0 run capped by a layup by Holt to take a 35-19 advantage.
One final three-pointer in the opening half for the Trailblazers by
Britton Berrett pushed UT in front, 42-25 at halftime.
Continuing to lead by double digits for the opening eight minutes of the second half, Utah Valley cut the Trailblazers' lead to 57-49 with 11:52 to play.
Utah Tech quickly answered back with a triple by Trujillo to push their lead back to 11.
A layup by Holt kept the Trailblazers ahead, 74-62, but a quick 6-0 run for the Wolverines trimmed UT's lead down to six (74-68) with 3:48 remaining in regulation.
A three-pointer by Trujillo halted the Wolverines' run and pushed the Trailblazers in the lead, 77-68.
Utah Valley refused to go away quietly cutting down UT's lead to two with a 9-2 run to make it, 79-77 with 17 seconds to go.
A pair of free throws by Holt ten seconds lated iced the game for the Trailblazers' victory.
Numbers to Know
- The Trailblazers improve to 3-2 at home against Utah Valley in the Division I era, but the Wolverines continue to lead the series, 9-4 in the D1 era.
- Utah Tech is now in a tie with Utah Valley for second in the WAC standings and is only game behind WAC leader California Baptist.
- The Trailblazers led the Wolverines in steals (10-9), points off turnovers (18-14), second chance points (14-6) & bench points (26-20).
- It was the second straight game and fourth time this season Trujillo has led the Trailblazers in scoring.
- For the 10th time this season and fifth time in WAC play, Utah Tech had at least five Trailblazers in double figures.
- Utah Tech moves to 9-2 at home this season and pushes their home winning streak to four.
- The Trailblazers have now won their most games in the Division I era with their 15th win of the season.
Up Next
The Trailblazers conclude their three-game homestand on Saturday night with a battle for first place in the WAC on the line taking on WAC leader California Baptist (19-6, 9-3 WAC) at 7 p.m. at Burns Arena.
