In their first home game in over a month, the Southern Utah University men’s basketball team hosted the University of Texas at Arlington on Saturday, Jan 3 in the America First Event Center. SUU started strong, but UTA stormed back with a monster offensive performance from guard Marcell McCreary and won 86-77.
Southern Utah now sits at 4-11 and lost their first home game since Nov. 8. They have an 0-2 standing in the Western Athletic Conference and have dropped five straight games.
UT Arlington now holds a 10-5 overall record with a 2-1 WAC record. They’ve won three of their last four contests.
First half
The T-Birds started the game off with a bang. After blocking UTA’s first shot and scoring three points off a layup and a free-throw, SUU hit four straight threes to go up 15-6 early.
After the first 11 and a half minutes, the Mavericks made three field goals on 15 attempts as SUU led 24-12. UT Arlington then made four straight threes of their own, culminating in a six minute stretch of shooting perfect from the field.
SUU stayed neck-and-neck in scoring to end the period though, leading 41-37 at halftime. The T-Birds played excellent offense this half, shooting 50% from three and snagging 11 points off turnovers compared to UTA’s five.
Second half
After their momentum-filled first half, SUU lost their flame in the second. They allowed the Mavericks to go on an 18-2 run in the first five minutes. This included nine points and two steals from McCreary, who scored 15 of UTA’s first 24 points of the game all from threes.
However, the T-Birds fought to keep things close and eventually cut the deficit to four with five minutes left, but the Mavericks played the foul game and kept their lead in check with free throws.
SUU wasn’t able to narrow the gap in the final few minutes, and UT Arlington came away with the 86-77 win. The Thunderbirds shot just 1-9 from three this half while UTA went 5-7.
Key stats
— McCreary put on a masterclass, cashing in a career-high 39 points to go along with seven rebounds, four steals and an assist. He shot 8-11 from three, 12-16 from the field and 7-7 from the free-throw line.
— UTA shot 57.9% from three and 51.9% from the field and SUU went 33.3% beyond the arc and 46.6% from the field.
— SUU scored 20 points on the fast break compared to UTA’s 11.
— SUU recorded more second-chance points than UTA despite having zero in the second half.
Top T-Birds
— Isaiah Cottrell filled the stat sheet, recording 13 points, six rebounds, five assists and three blocks.
— Elijah Duval had 13 points, two steals, a rebound and an assist.
— Jaiden Feroah notched his second double-double of the season, recording 13 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks, two assists and a steal.
— Roc Lee had eight points, two rebounds, two steals and an assist in 12 minutes off the bench.
What’s next?
SUU will head to Orem, Utah to take on Utah Valley University on Thursday, Jan. 8 at 6 p.m. in the Utah Community Credit Union Center. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Author: Payson Davis
Photographer: SUU Athletics
Editor: Heather Turner
