Looking to avoid their worst start since the 2015-16 season, the Southern Utah University men’s basketball team will host Bethesda University on Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 6:30 p.m. in the America First Event Center.
This game will also be streamed live on ESPN+.
SUU sits at 0-2, with double-digit losses to Arizona State University and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
Bethesda, a member of the National Christian College Athletic Association, is 0-3. They recently suffered a 52-point blowout loss to Hope International University. They were 8-17 last season with a 4-16 record in away games.
Southern Utah
One of SUU’s main struggles has been shooting on both sides. SUU is in the bottom 10% of Division One teams in field goal percentage and three-point percentage, and their opponents are shooting nearly 50% in both splits. They also take nearly half as many three-point attempts as opponents.
The one stat SUU has outperformed in is blocks, where they average 1.5 more than their competition. However, more than half of their blocks on the year came from Jaiden Feroah’s last game, where he had eight.
Feroah has been one of SUU’s top players, going 11-14 inside the three-point line and showing a high capacity for scoring, rebounding and defending.
SUU has exhibited a need for their bench players to score at similar levels to their opponents’ benches. Players like Cale Barclay and Zach Bell had promising performances against UTRGV that could translate to strong showings against Bethesda.
Bethesda
The Flames have had a rough season, allowing 98 points in three straight games. Their closest contest was a 24-point loss to Life Pacific University.
They’ve been less accurate than SUU, shooting 20% from three. They’ve made three more shots beyond the arc than SUU while taking 24 more attempts.
They’ve also been dominated in the paint, which is promising for an SUU team who needs a spark to their defense. Bethesda has allowed 27 more rebounds per game to opponents and averages half as many blocks as SUU.
Their best player so far has been guard Cameron Durr. The senior averages 13 points per game to go along with three assists, two rebounds and 1.5 steals.
SUU and Bethesda have faced off seven times, with the T-Birds winning every game by double digits. The T-Birds took down Bethesda 107-54 in last year’s contest.
Author: Payson Davis
Photographer: SUU Athletics
Editor: Jack Paul
