The Southern Utah University men’s basketball team matched up against the University of Utah for their eighth contest of the season. Southern Utah went down big but had several huge scoring surges to keep the score close. Three Thunderbirds scored 20 or more points, but with great contributions from many Utes players, Utah pulled away with a 88-86 victory.
First half
SUU forward Parsa Fallah won the tip-off to get the game rolling. Offense for both sides started slow with no points scored in the first minute. The cold start ended with Utah guard Ben Carlson scoring the first points of the game. The score helped the Utes gain momentum to go up 11-3 four minutes into regulation.
After the run by the Utes, the Thunderbirds found some scoring rhythm to keep their deficit manageable. SUU struggled to cut down the lead, as Ute center Keba Keita and Carlson both set a strong defensive wall and provided efficient offense. With 10 minutes left in the half, Utah took their first double-digit lead from a dunk by guard Hunter Erickson.
Utah continued to dominate, going up by as many as 15 points. The score was 41-27 in favor of Utah with four minutes left. Southern Utah started catching up and cutting into the Utes’ lead with a barrage of three-pointers. This Thunderbird surge was led by Fallah and guard Braden Housley. This run left the Utes up 47-40 at halftime.
Second half
Coming out of the break, Southern Utah was unable to keep the momentum they had gained at the end of the first half. Keita stayed in rhythm, and led the Utes on a 12-2 scoring run to go up 59-42.
Despite the strong run by the Utes, the Thunderbirds did not give up and brought the Utes’ lead down to 10 points with 12 minutes left in regulation. This SUU effort was led by Fallah, Housley and guard Dominique Ford, who all scored 20 or more points in the game. Southern Utah came close to taking the lead but got stopped by double-digit scoring efforts from Carlson, Keita, guard Gabe Madsen and guard Rollie Worster.
With four minutes to go, the Utes were up 81-75. The Utes and Thunderbirds exchanged shots, keeping the score close. With 16 seconds left, the score was 86-80. Ford hit a three to make it a one-score game. SUU had to foul to stop the clock. Madsen made both free throws to extend the lead to 88-83 in favor of the Utes. With only three seconds left, Ford hit another three, but time ran out for the Thunderbirds. The competition ended with a 88-86 victory for the Utes.
Explosive players
— Fallah had 20 points, four rebounds and three assists.
— Ford scored 23 points, made five threes and grabbed three rebounds.
— Housley scored 23 points, made four threes and had five assists along with two steals.
— Carlson put up a 15-point, 10-rebound double-double along with a steal and a block.
— Worster scored 12 points and 10 rebounds.
— Madsen scored 19 points, three rebounds and three assists.
— Keita scored 23 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
Key stats
— Southern Utah made 12/25 three-pointers.
— Utah scored 21 more points off the bench than Southern Utah.
— SUU never led in the game.
Up next for Southern Utah
Southern Utah University will take on the Idaho State University Bengals at home in their next matchup on Dec. 9 at 6:30 p.m. This matchup can be attended at the America First Event Center or streamed on ESPN+.
Author: Jacob McQueary
Photographer: Anden Garfield
Editor: Anden Garfield
sports@suunews.net
