March 1, 2013

OREM, Utah -- Utah Valley University plays its final Great West Conference regular season game on Saturday when Chicago State University comes to the UCCU Center for a 7:05 p.m. MT tip.

The game pits two teams that will compete in the Western Athletic Conference next season.

The Wolverines (13-16, 2-5) dropped a non-conference contest at North Dakota State, 63-56, on Tuesday in Fargo. The Bison, one of three teams vying for a Summit League title, had four players reach double figures while UVU got 25 points from Ben Aird and 15 from Holton Hunsaker.

Aird leads Utah Valley with 14.6 points and 8.9 rebounds, which also leads the Great West. Hunsaker is averaging 13.2 points while Nick Thompson scores 9.9 per game and averages a league-best 4.1 assists per contest.

Chicago State (8-20, 2-4) also lost a non-conference game on Tuesday, falling 58-50 to Eastern Illinois in the Windy City. The Cougars defeated UVU by eight, 62-54, on Jan. 26 in Chicago.

"Chicago State is a reflection of Coach (Tracy) Dildy's personality and work ethic and they always play hard and aggressive against us," Utah Valley coach Dick Hunsaker said. "We need to be prepared for their many defensive schemes and pressure."

In CSU's earlier win, Matt Ross led the way with 12 points while Nick Thompson paced UVU with 13 points and 13 boards. Chicago State will host the final Great West Conference Tournament March 14-16 at the Jones Convocation Center.

The Wolverines will play another future WAC foe next week, hosting CSU Bakersfield on Saturday, March 9 in the final regular season game of the year.