OREM, Utah – The Utah Valley Wolverines started Western Athletic play on the right foot with a 77-50 win over California Baptist at the UCCU Center.

Utah Valley started conference play against California Baptist on Friday, January 8.

Three UVU players scored in double figures, led by Jamison Overton with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Fardaws Aimaq had 12 points and 14 rebounds. Trey Woodbury posted 11 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Former BYU guard Blaze Nield contributed 9 points and 7 assists. Evan Cole chipped in 8 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists.

The Wolverines shot 47 percent from the field (29-61), 23 percent from downtown (4-17) and 68 percent at the free throw line (15-22). Utah Valley outscored California Baptist 45-27 in the first half and 32-23 in the second half.

MBB | Jamison Overton scored 18 points and Fardaws Aimaq recorded a 12-point, 14-rebound double-double to lead @UVUmbb to a 77-50 win over California Baptist to open @WACsports play on Friday night at the UCCU Center.#UVUhoops #UVU #WAChoops

RECAP: https://t.co/XnWEqYj4i9

— UVU Athletics (@GoUVU) January 9, 2021

Two players for California Baptist reached double figures led by Gorjok Gak with 14 points and 7 boards. Tre Armstrong added 11 points and 3 rebounds. They shot 35 percent from the field (20-56), 22 percent from beyond the arc (4-18) and 66 percent at the charity stripe (6-9).

UVU outrebounded California Baptist 49-26, outassisted them 21-9 and both teams had 13 turnovers. The Wolverines had 42 points in the paint.

Early in the second half, the game got a little chippy as Overton and Te’Jon Sawyer got tangled up. When Overton dropped to the floor, Aimaq got in the middle of the scuffle. Head coach Mark Madsen had to break up the altercation. Aimaq got ejected from the game for his role in the incident.

Things got chippy tonight between Utah Valley and Cal Baptist. Mark Madsen had to come out on the court to break it up. pic.twitter.com/J2W3MOIHaH

— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) January 9, 2021

Utah Valley will improve their record to 3-5 overall and 1-0 in Western Athletic Conference play. They snapped a four-game losing streak with a win over CBU. California Baptist and Utah Valley will clash again on Saturday, January 9 at the UCCU Center in Orem, Utah to finish a two-game series. Tip-off on Saturday will be at 6 p.m. MST and will be streamed on the KSL TV and the WAC Digital Network.