Men's Basketball | 11/06/23 | 1:40 PM

HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College Men's Basketball team will take on NCAA Division I opponent, Utah Valley tonight in their first exhibition contest of the year at 5 p.m. in Orem, Utah.

After a weekend in Arizona, the Fighting Saints (0-2) will play one more road game before returning home to Helena for their home openers later this week. Tonight's opponent, the Wolverines (0-0) will be playing their first official contest of the year.

Carroll had a tough go in the season's opening event this past weekend in Glendale. The Saints dropped a pair of games to teams appearing on the preseason NAIA coaches' poll, (RV) OUAZ (77-89), and No. 3 Arizona Christian (63-87).

The Saints, under new leadership for the first time in five seasons, are looking to build some team chemistry in the early portion of the schedule, with several new faces joining the fray this season.

Andrew Cook (Huntington Beach, Calif. / JR) showed why he was a preseason All-Frontier selection this past weekend, averaging 18.0 points and six rebounds per game. Kendall Moore (Dayton, Ohio / JR) and Gui Pedra (Sao Paulo, Brazil / SR) also enter tonight's game averaging double-digit points, at 11.5 and 10.0 points per game, respectively.

As a team, the Saints are only averaging 27.5 percent from three point range entering the evening, and will look to create better opportunities moving forward. Limiting turnovers (29 total) and playing better team defense will also be a priority for the Saints as the season progresses.

Carroll will have their hands full with a talented Wolverine team tonight. Utah Valley won the WAC regular season championship in 2022-23, earning a school-record 28 wins in the process. Last year's head man, Mark Madsen took a power-five opportunity at Cal in the offseason, and Todd Phillips will begin his tenure at the helm tonight.

UVU's roster features 11 new faces, and will be led by preseason All-WAC selection, Drake Allen.

Tip-off for tonight's exhibition is slated for 5 p.m.

Tonight's game will be broadcast live online through ESPN+, a subscription-based streaming platform. Live stats can be followed along HERE.

Visit www.carrollathletics.com this evening for a recap of the action, and to stay up to date with everything going on in Carroll Athletics.