LAS VEGAS (ABC4 Sports) - The Utah Valley men's basketball team is two wins away from its first ever bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Tanner Toolson poured in 16 points as the Wolverines cruised past Utah Tech in the WAC Tournament semifinals Wednesday night at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, 74-57.
UVU will face the winner of the Abilene Christian-Seattle game Friday night at 7:00 p.m.
Utah Valley (24-7) won its ninth consecutive game, pulling away from the upset-minded Trailblazers in the second half.
"Guys kind of listened to us," said UVU head coach Todd Phillips. "We're telling them to attack, attack, attack. Be aggressive, get to the basket, because they came out trapping a lot, so you want to attack that a little bit. Our guys, they listen to something every now and then."
Carter Welling scored 10 points and pulled down seven rebounds for the Wolverines. Osiris Grady, Ethan Potter and Kylin Green all chipped in with nine points apiece.
WAC Player of the Year Dominick Nelson was held to just six points on 1-of-8 shooting, but his teammates picked him up.
Utah Valley had a 31-22 lead at the half, and stretched the lead to as many as 21 points in the second half.
"I think it's a continued effort," Phillips said. "Things weren't going well. We missed some shots, so the rhythm of the game was off. But the guys just stayed in it."
Utah Valley made just 4 of 14 shots from three-point range, and shot 42 percent from the field overall. Trevan Leonhardt had five assists for the Wolverines.
Hakim Byrd led Utah Tech, which finished the season with a record of 7-26.