Sports

Utah Basketball Team Pulled From ESPN After March Madness Ban Amid $1M Contract Dispute

#Utah Valley Wolverines
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The Utah Valley basketball team is caught in the middle of a nasty fight between the school and its athletic conference. An exit fee dispute could strip the Wolverines of their first NCAA Tournament trip.

The WAC has banned the team from the conference tournament. The messiness went another step further on Thursday.

Utah Valley was a junior college up until 2003 when it made the move to D1. A decade later, it transitioned to become a member of the Western Athletic Conference.

Since, the basketball program has won four regular season titles with the most recent coming last season. It’s failed, however, to win the conference tournament.

That’s prevented the Wolverines from getting an automatic bid to March Madness. Despite currently being in a three-way tie for first place in the league standings, it doesn’t appear they’ll make their first trip this year.

Utah Valley is banned from the WAC basketball tournament.

The WAC is, for all intents and purposes, a one-bid league. The conference champion gets into the Big Dance. The rest are on the outside looking in come Selection Sunday.

Last year, Utah Valley fell in the conference tournament championship to Grand Canyon as a one-seed. This year, they would have a chance to again be highly seeded – if eligible. That’s a BIG if…

The Wolverines are leaving the WAC after the 2025-26 campaign. They will join the Big West next season.

Utah Valley, according to the league, refuses to pay a $1 million exit fee.

The WAC has sued the university for not honoring its contract. It also barred the Wolverines from competing in the upcoming conference tournament.

Again, as a one-bid league, having no conference tournament championship effectively equals no March Madness invite.

But wait, it gets worse.

Utah Valley fans will likely be unable to witness their team compete for either a conference or national title. Now, they may not be able to watch them play at all.

WAC Commissioner Rebekah Ray put out a statement Thursday detailing a push to remove Wolverines games from the air.

“Beginning today with the men’s basketball game against Abilene Christian University, the Western Athletic Conference has removed all Utah Valley University home athletic contests from its broadcast schedule until further notice,” the release read.

“These events will not be available for broadcast on ESPN+ or otherwise. This action is required due to Utah Valley University’s failure to meet its obligations under WAC bylaws, resulting in its status as a member institution not in good standing.”

When Utah Valley basketball plays at home, the games will not be broadcast. Fans won’t be able to watch unless they attend those games in person.

They could also be robbed from witnessing program history with the potential NCAA Tournament snub. Of course, all of that could change should the battle with the WAC be resolved before season’s end.