The Southern Utah University men’s basketball team was defeated by Seattle University on Saturday, Dec. 2, by a score of 73-63. The Thunderbirds, who are now 2-5 overall and 0-2 in Western Athletic Conference play, have so far been unable to find a groove offensively.
First half
The Redhawks started out hot, outscoring SUU 15-8 in the game’s first six minutes. They were able to force three Thunderbird turnovers early. SUU kept the game competitive, mostly due to 10 first-half points from senior guard Zion Young.
Seattle U found a lot of success running the pick-and-roll, taking advantage of multiple miscommunications from the Thunderbirds’ help-side defense. Center Brandton Chatfield used these mishaps to total 10 points in the first half.
The Redhawks led 36-27 at the break.
Second half
Seattle U kept it rolling, scoring the half’s first six points to put them up by 15 before the first media timeout. The Thunderbirds trailed by as many as 17 late in the second half before they were able to make a small run.
SUU went on a 9-2 spurt to close the gap to just 10 with a little over three minutes remaining. After Thunderbird junior Dominique Ford converted a four-point play, SUU found themselves trailing by just eight, the lowest since the four-minute mark of the first half.
That was as close as SUU got. Since the Thunderbirds were unable to get stops, the Redhawks picked up their first WAC win of the season.
Key statistics
— Thunderbird forward Chazz Hutchison had a big impact off the bench, tallying 11 points to go along with five rebounds, two blocks and a steal in 25 minutes of play.
— SUU shot just 39% from the field and were only able to convert 6/24 three-pointers.
— Seattle U was led by three-level scorer Cameron Tyson. He had 22 points and five rebounds along with some big buckets down the stretch of the game.
— The Redhawks shot just over 46% from the floor.
What’s next?
The Thunderbirds will head to Salt Lake City to take on the University of Utah on Tuesday, Dec. 5, at 6:00 p.m. The game can be viewed on the Pac-12 Network.
Author: Brig Pyfer
Photographer: Anden Garfield
Editor: Anden Garfield
sports@suunews.net
