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Show Bl WWW.NETXNEWS.NET MONDAY • NOVEMBER 20 • 2006 Wolverines shine Webster's Wisdom The men's basketball team beat two Big Sky Conference opponents to open the season Jack Jared Waters Sports Writer Ben Webster Sports Editor Rivalry week The jokes and trash talk between BYU and Utah seem to go on year after year, and when rivalry week comes around, even the casual Ute or Cougar fan gets heated up. Since we can't cheer for a Wolverine squad on the turf, UVSC students have to go to the other options, BYU or Utah often the choice. This week the red and the blue get together up on the hill for the Holy War; even though the teams have been playing quite differently most of the year, the stands will be packed. The Cougars have been consistently dominant throughout Mountain West Conference play while the Utes have struggled to find an identity. One week Utah looks like a conference contender, then the next week they look like a conference cellar dweller, BYU's closest conference game came against TCU, and they Y tah Valley State College dominated Big Sky Conference champion Montana 74-57 to improve to 2-0 this season. Thus, the Wolverines completed the Montana sweep, defeating both Montana and Montana State to begin their season. Ryan Toolson came up strong off of the bench for the Wolverines, leading UVSC in scoring and hitting shots when it counted. Coach Dick Hunsaker said of Ryan, "He's got some good instincts out there on the court. I really expect that he will continue to get sharper." Toolson finished with 26 points, including five threes, one more than Montana's entire team could muster. Montana showed early on that they would be tough and disciplined, especially with their strong force on the inside, led by star Andrew Strait. He made shots in the first few minutes as if they were handed to him. It looked as if UVSC had a long night ahead of them. Five minutes into the game, Strait muscled his way for a bucket, extending the Grizzlies1 lead to 12-5. David Heck struck back with turnaround fade-away shot, but was oneupped by MU's Matt Martin's 3-pointer, forcing Coach Hunsaker to change things up on the court. Hunsaker put Toolson in, and he contributed quickly. After a Joe Walker block, a fast break produced an easy lay up for Toolson, cutting MU's lead to 1713. The teams then matched points over the next six minutes to make the score 25-21, heading into a timeout. It was becoming quite a battle. "They are physical. They've got Chad Clark/NetXNews SeeBASKEBAU-B2 Senior point guard Chris Bailey captained the Wolverines to two wins to start 2006. First instate win James Warnick Sports Writer See WISDOM-B3 This week in sports November 22-29 22 Women's basketball against San Diego State 3:05 p.m. Women's basketball against Southern Virginia 7:05 p.m. 24 Women's 25 basketball against New Mexico State 3:05 p.m. Women's ' basketball against Boise State 7:05 p.m. Jaime Teerlink/NetXNews David Wyman and Doug Wenglare helped UVSC battle defensively to keep BYU from coming back. BYU Ice Cats go down in firstever meeting with Wolverines Ben Webster Sports Editor IceThere's always been an unspoken, sometimes spoken, rivalry between BYU and UVSC in many aspects of the two schools. But there is finally a rivalry developing between the lines. When the Wolverines skated past the BYU Ice Cats for a 7-5 win in the teams first meeting in history, UVSC showed that their hockey program isn't going to take a back seat to another Utah County team. "There was extra incentive in this one, going against BYU," Coach Matt Beaudry said, "We own the valley now." If there wasn't enough motivation already for Beaudry, he used to coach the Ice Cats and left on not-so-good terms despite leading BYU to their best years. UVSC Captain Eric Bowman added, "We don't have to hear anything from them anymore. We are in just our second year and they have been around for a while. This was huge for us." With the scored tied 5-5 in the second period, UVSC forward Bryan Larsen put home the eventual game-winning goal with just under six minutes and gave UVSC a historic win. Beaudry said, "This program is growing and we are only going to get better." The Wolverines managed only five wins all of last year and with the victory over BYU, UVSC is 5-7 for the season. • See HOCKEY-B2 Outstanding defense, great" shooting and stellar play from sophomore center, Robyn Fairbanks gave UVSC a b8-60 win over in-state foe Utah State to improve their record to 2-0. Fairbanks was "in the groove" against Utah State, scoring 31 points in 31 minutes of play, while adding nine rebounds. "I felt open a lot inside tonight and I feel like I can make open shots," Fairbanks said. Fairbanks controlled the low-post all night for the Wolverines, and the Aggiek weren't prepared for her physical style of play. She shot 12-20 from the field, while adding 6-8 at the charity stripe. Fairbanks' 31 point effort was one point shy of tying her career high and school record of 32 that she put up last season. Coach Cathy Nixon said, "It's a real luxury as a coach to have a player like Robyn. You pretty much know that if you get her the ball SeeW0MENSBBALL-B3 |