On a road trip to Seattle, the Southern Utah University men’s basketball team took on the University of Washington on Saturday, Dec. 13. Southern Utah continued to struggle on the road, losing 105-69.
This was SUU’s second-largest loss of the season. Southern Utah fell to 4-8 on the year and 1-7 away from Cedar City. Washington improves to 7-3 on the year and 4-1 at home.
First half
Both teams traded small runs to open the game. Washington opened up on a 8-2 run thanks to a pair of free-throws and SUU responded with five points from Tanner Hayhurst and a basket from Jaiden Feroah.
Over the next five minutes, Washington slowly pulled away and took a seven-point lead. SUU battled and kept things close during an uphill battle. Isaiah Cottrell scored eight of SUU’s remaining 13 points in the half.
Despite Cottrell’s strong first half, Washington was in complete control and held a 20-point lead at halftime.
Second half
SUU aimed to close the gap but Washington wasn’t going to give them any easy chances. Through the first five minutes it was even play. Elijah Duval scored eight of SUU’s first 15 points in the second half.
Every time Southern Utah scored, Washington seemed to have an answer. Wesley Yates lll hit two threes and helped extend the Huskies’ lead to 24.
Southern Utah continued to struggle defensively, allowing UW to shoot 56% from the field and 50% from three. Washington saw their lead get up to as much as 39 but eventually won 105-69.
Key stats
— Washington scored 18 points off turnovers, while SUU had none.
— The T-Birds scored just one fastbreak basket while the Huskies had 21 fastbreak points.
— 46 of Washington’s points came from the bench, while SUU had just 17 points from non-starters.
— Nine different players scored in the double digits, with six of them being Huskies.
Top T-Birds
— Cottrell scored 13 points and nabbed six rebounds and an assist.
— Duval led SUU in scoring with 18 points on 8/19 shooting from the field. Duval also led the T-Birds with nine rebounds and six assists.
— Hayhurst finished with 16 points, his second highest point total in a game this season.
— Feroah led the Thunderbirds with two blocks while also recording five points, five rebounds and an assist.
What’s next?
Southern Utah will continue their road trip as they head to face Northern Arizona University on Thursday, Dec. 18 at 5 p.m. The game can be streamed live on ESPN+.
Author: Jack Paul
Photographer: SUU Athletics
Editor: Payson Davis
