Preview: Women's Basketball Heads to Utah Valley

After its first home win since 2019, the Chicago State women's basketball team heads to Orem, Utah to face Utah Valley at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Here's how to watch, follow and attend:

Chicago State Cougars vs. Utah Valley Wolverines Date | Time Thursday, January 27 | 7:00 p.m. CT Location UCCU Center | Orem, Utah Television ESPN+ Live Stats Live Stats Game Notes Chicago State Game Notes

WHAT'S HAPPENING Chicago State women's basketball faces Utah Valley for the first during the 2021-22 season after winning the program's first home game in three years on Tuesday.

ALL-TIME Utah Valley is 21-10 all-time against the Cougars, with the Wolverines having won each of the last six. Last season, the teams met three times, including a 61-43 UVU win at the WAC Touranment in Las Vegas. The last CSU win was on Feb. 8, 2018 in Orem, an 84-74 victory.

LAST TIME OUT The Cougars earned their first home win since Feb. 23, 2019 on Tuesday, storming back to edge New Mexico State, 67-64. The win was also the Cougars' first-ever against the Aggies. CSU trailed, 59-43, with 9:18 left and roared back with a 24-5 run, keeping New Mexico State without a field goal over the final nine minutes. Aaliyah Collins led with 17 points, six assists, five rebounds and four steals, while Jazmine Covington knocked down three threes and dropped in 13 points.

SIZING UP THE WOLVERINES The Wolverines enter 8-10, last taking down Seattle U, 65-51, on Monday. UVU has now won three of four games after enduring a six-game skid that ended Jan. 17. Josie Williams, who averages a double-double, powers an attack that features three players who average double-digit points. Williams is flanked by Maria Carvalho and Madison Grange, who score 12.8 and 10.4 points per game, respectively.

CLIMBING THE RANKS As just a freshman, former Washington State Player of the Year Aaliyah Collins has taken the conference — and nation — by storm. She leads the Cougars (and ranks fourth in the WAC) with 16.1 points per game, and her 2.9 steals per game lead the league, an average that ranks 15th in NCAA Division I. On Tuesday, Jan. 18, Collins earned the first USBWA Freshman of the Week honor for a WAC student-athlete and the first for a mid-major player since Nov. 2019. Collins has also been named WAC Freshman of the Week four times this season, the most ever for a Chicago State basketball player, men's or women's.

About Chicago State

Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title and made an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT).  The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. 

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