The Southern Utah University men’s basketball team will continue their three-game road trip by playing at Tarleton State University on Thursday, Jan. 25, at 6 p.m. and at Abilene Christian University on Saturday, Jan. 27, at 2 p.m. Both games can be streamed on ESPN+.
Tarleton State
Tarleton State University enters this matchup second in the Western Athletic Conference resume seeding with a record of 12-6 overall and 5-2 in conference play. The Texans have one of the best defenses in the WAC, ranking No. 2 in opponent scoring, allowing just 66.3 points per game. Tarleton State also ranks second in the WAC in steals per game with 8.9.
Senior forward Jakorie Smith leads TSU in scoring, averaging 14.3 points per game, including a season-high 34 points against Florida International University. If there is a weakness with this team, it is the three-point shooting. The Texans rank 10th out of 11 in the conference in three-point shooting at just 29.3%.
Abilene Christian
Abilene Christian University comes into this week 7-11 overall and 2-5 in the WAC. In the conference seeding system, ACU ranks No. 9, one spot ahead of Southern Utah. After losing their last three games, Abilene Christian got back in the win column after a 78-67 victory against the University of Texas at Arlington. The Wildcats rank second in the conference in three-point shooting at 34.6%.
Abilene Christian is led in scoring by guards Ali Abdou Dibba and Hunter Jack Madden. Dibba leads the team in scoring and ranks No. 5 in the WAC, averaging 15.6 points per game. Madden is third on the team in scoring with 12.3 points per game. Junior guard Kavion McClain ranks third in the conference in assists with 3.61 per game.
Southern Utah
Southern Utah University is 6-12 overall and 1-6 in the WAC. SUU is one of the top-scoring teams in the conference, averaging 76.9 points per game. Junior guard Dominique Ford is one of the conference’s best scorers, averaging 16.5 points per game and ranking No. 4 in the WAC.
An Achilles’ heel for Southern Utah this year has been the defense. SUU ranks last in the conference in opponent field goal percentage, allowing teams to shoot 49.4% from the field. If there is one aspect Southern Utah exceeds at, it is their perimeter defense. Southern Utah allows teams to shoot just 29.4% from three.
Southern Utah is 1-1 overall against Tarleton State, and 1-0 against Abilene Christian all-time.
Author: Jack Paul
Photographer: Anden Garfield
Editor: Anden Garfield
sports@suunews.net
