OREM, Utah – Tarleton State Men's Basketball dropped its second on its western road trip on Saturday afternoon at Utah Valley, 81-56, in the UCCU Center.
 
The Texans (10-15 overall, 5-5 WAC) trailed by just three at the break, 39-36. With the win, Utah Valley (17-7, 9-1) tops the league as the only nine-win program.
 
Bubu Benjamin led the team with 18. The sophomore made 10 of his 13 from the free throw line, and 3-for-14 from the floor. Chris Mpaka nearly notched another double-double with 12 points and eight boards. Mpaka swatted five blocks, the third game this season he has reached that mark. The junior is the only player in the WAC with multiple games with five or more blocks this season.
 
Izzy Miles was the third Texan to score in double figures adding 11. He also led the team with three steals. Freshman Karim Elgizawy earned his first start as a Texan playing in 32 minutes and scoring three points.
 
Benjamin started the Texans with the first five Purple and White points. Tied at five, Joseph Martinez gave the Texans the lead after corralling a loose ball rebound and putting it back in in open court. Benjamin scored the next three points making three of four free throws to bring the Texans within a pair, 12-10.
 
Trailing by five, the Texans broke off on a 6-0 run to regain the lead, 16-15 eight minutes into the game. A bucket by Mpaka and a pair of made free throws from each Miles and Benjamin capped the 6-0 run. The Texans gained controlled running off another 6-0 run. This time, four came from Mpaka including a pair of made free throws. Miles forced a steal on the Wolverines' offensive side and scooped it up to finish with a dunk at the other end.
 
Utah Valley tied it back up at 22, responding with a 22-0 run. Mpaka scored six-straight Purple and White points to give his squad a 29-26 advantage with just over five minutes remaining. But, UVU burst on another 6-0 run to regain the lead for the rest of the half. In the final minute of the half, the Texans prevented the Wolverines from growing their lead out of reach. Nick Krass banked in a jumper as the shot clock expired, followed by Grimes sinking a triple as the shot clock and half expired.
 
The Wolverines' Tanner Toolson led all scorers with 21 first-half points. As a team, UVU knocked down five triples, with four from Toolson. The Texans shot 44 percent in the first half and 40 percent from deep. Mpaka and Benjamin each registered in double-figures in the first 20 minutes. The Texans five started played the first 12 minutes, with Martinez and Elgizawy each playing all 20.
 
The Wolverines widened their lead to nine to start the second half on an 11-5 run to open the second 20 minutes. Bristow nailed his first triple of the night to cut the Texan deficit to seven with 12:46 to play, 52-45. But, UVU broke off on an 8-0 run to lead by 17.The Wolverines led by as many as 18, but the Texans used a 5-0 run to cut it back to 13, 65-52. Benjamin knocked down his second triple of the night, followed by a pair of made freebies by Miles.
 
Utah Valley closed the game on a 14-4 run. The Wolverines ballooned their lead to as many as 26 in the final minute to ultimately take the victory, 81-56. UVU outscored Tarleton 42-20 in the final 20-minute session.
 
Tarleton finished the game shooting 31.9 percent from the floor after making just four shots at an 18.2 percent rate in the second half.
 
Tarleton State will return home for a pair of contests in Stephenville. The Texans will play four of their final six games at home, a place where they are undefeated in WAC play. Tarleton State will host Grand Canyon on Thursday night at 7 p.m. CT in which it will be a Purple Out with early-arriving fans receiving free Purple t-shirts. The Texans will host Seattle U on Saturday night to end the week.