The Southern Utah University men’s basketball team traveled down to Louisiana to finish their road trip. In their first matchup against Louisiana Tech University, Southern Utah lost 67-53. SUU bounced back the next day and earned a victory over Texas State University 74-67, improving to 2-3 on the year.
At Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech jumped out to an early lead against Southern Utah in the first half because of their efficient shooting and stingy defense. As a team, Louisiana Tech shot 45.8% from the field in the first half while Southern Utah shot a poor 29%. Senior Isaiah Crawford led all players in the first half with 12 points, while Zion Young led SUU with 10 points. Louisiana Tech led 35-25 heading into the second half.
Southern Utah shot the ball a lot better in the second half, going 4/9 from the three-point line. Sophomore guard Braeden Housley led the team shooting a perfect 2/2 from three. Louisiana Tech continued to put pressure on Southern Utah, grabbing four steals in the second half. Crawford continued to shoot the ball well and led Louisiana Tech to the victory over Southern Utah.
Against Texas State
Southern Utah continued to struggle to shoot the basketball in the first half against Texas State, shooting 32.3% from the field and 16.7% from three. Although the offense struggled early, the defense backed them up, holding Texas State to only 25 first-half points. SUU forced nine turnovers in the first half to give them a 28-25 lead.
The offense found its groove in the second half behind the terrific play of redshirt junior Young. Young had 17 points on 6/8 shooting in the second half, leading the way for the Thunderbirds. Freshman guard Kaden Gumbs and junior guard Dontae Horne led the Bobcats in second-half scoring with 11 points each. Southern Utah eventually pulled away from Texas State and earned the victory.
Up next
Southern Utah University will play its first Western Athletic Conference game when they host California Baptist University on Wednesday, Nov. 29, at 6:30 p.m.
Author: Jack Paul
Photographer: Anden Garfield
Editor: Anden Garfield
sports@suunews.net
