Men’s basketball (19-15) advanced to the second round of the National Invitation Tournament on Wednesday after notching a 79-78 victory over the Utah Valley University Wolverines in Orem, Utah.
With the clock ticking down, graduate student forward Tyrone Marshall Jr. blocked the potential game-winning shot, snapping the Wolverines’ 27-game home winning streak dating back to March 2, 2024. Like many times this season, the Revolutionaries squandered a 16-point second-half lead but ultimately fended off the Wolverines late to extend their NIT win streak to seven games, after they won the tournament in 2016.
Leading the way offensively for the Revs was graduate student center Rafael Castro, who had 22 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double and went 10-12 from the free-throw line. Junior guard Trey Autry had 18 points, all coming from beyond the arc and Marshall added 15 in his first start since Dec. 22. Graduate student forward Luke Hunger, who has been a new, frequent starter for the team did not play due to a foot injury.
It was a slow start for both teams to open the tournament. Neither squad was able to hit the ten-point plateau until the 14:48 mark when the Wolverines’ junior guard Sherman Weatherspoon IV’s three-pointer found nylon.
But the Revs found their offensive game, leading 25-15 with 8:41 on a layup from junior guard Jean Aranguren. Castro bumped the lead to 11 on a pair of free throws with just over a minute to go and redshirt sophomore guard Christian Jones got it to 13, leading to an Autry three as time expired to give the Revs a 45-29 lead going into the break.
To begin the second half, the Wolverines scored five unanswered points, cutting the Revs’ lead to 11. But Castro would nab the next seven points for the Revs, giving them a 52-36 lead with 17:53 to play.
After the flurry from Castro and a dunk from Marshall, the Revs’ offense went cold, allowing the Wolverines to claw back. Another three from Weatherspoon and six points from redshirt sophomore guard Jackson Holcombe — who had a game-high 27 points — cut the lead to 60-52 with 10:23 remaining.
Senior forward Hayden Welling would get the Wolverines within six at the 8:48 mark, finishing a layup off a Holcombe assist. A minute later, Autry would put the Revs in front by 10 once again, as his bid from downtown off an assist by graduate student guard Tre Dinkins was good.
But after the Autry triple, the Revs’ offense, once again, went quiet. In the span of just under two minutes, the Wolverines went on an 11-0 run to take a one-point lead on a layup from sophomore forward Isaac Davis.
Now trailing for the first time since early in the first half, the Revs were forced to respond or they would see another game they were leading slip away, eerily similar to many of their losses during the Atlantic 10 regular and postseason.
After Aranguren, who was playing with four fouls at this point, gave the Revs the lead again, Marshall blocked Holmcombe on a layup, and on the trip down the court, Jones was fouled, sending him to the line for two makes to give the Revs a 70-67 lead with 4:15 on the clock.
As the clock ticked under three minutes, Holcombe sank a pair of free throws to cut the lead back down to one. But immediately, Autry found paydirt with his sixth three-pointer of the night to increase the lead to four.
After Welling went 2-2 from the line, Castro was fouled, and he matched Welling to keep the lead at four with 2:02 to go. With 1:25 remaining and the Revs up 77-75, Castro slammed home a dunk to keep the Revs ahead by two scores.
Redshirt junior Trevan Leonhardt capitalized on an Autry miss to get the Wolverines within one with 35 seconds remaining. Out of the ensuing timeout, Autry misplayed a ball, giving Utah Valley the ball back with 27 seconds potentially left in the Revs’ season.
After stymying the Wolverines’ first attempt at a potential game-winner, a tie-up gave Utah Valley possession again with eight seconds to go. With the ball in their leading scorer’s hands, Holcombe drove the basket from the right side, only to be met by Marshall, who swatted his bid at the winner to secure the victory for the Revs.
With the win, the Revs advance to the second round of the NIT and will take on the number-one-seeded University of New Mexico on Sunday at 8 p.m. in Albuquerque, N.M.
