On Saturday, Feb. 28, the Southern Utah University men’s basketball team faced Utah Tech University at home for their rivalry game. The atmosphere of the arena was indescribable as the T-Birds and the Trailblazers battled it out back and forth. The Thunderbirds were led by forward Tanner Hayhurst, who scored 25 points in SUU’s statement win of 81-67 over conference No. 2 Utah Tech.
SUU now holds a 10-19 record with a 6-10 conference standing. They moved from the bottom spot in the conference to No. 5.
Utah Tech stands at 18-13 on the year and carries an 11-6 conference record. They sit at No. 3 in the Western Athletic Conference with the loss.
First half
The Thunderbirds got the game started by winning the tip, but ended the play in a turnover. Utah Tech set the early standard for the game’s energy by hitting a three-pointer just 20 seconds into the game.
Although SUU played a strong rebounding game, the Trailblazers managed to gain a seven-point lead with about 10 minutes left in the half.
With the Trailblazers ahead, the T-Birds kept fighting back and held their own. Starting center Kai Burdick raised the bar for SUU with an emphatic dunk to bring the team within four points of the Trailblazers.
With just five minutes left in the half, SUU’s aggressive defense and magnetic offense started to get the ball rolling. They found themselves up 31-30 on Utah Tech.
To round out the final stretch, Hayhurst’s 18 first-half points helped Southern Utah to reach a four-point lead over UTU at halftime.
Second half
Starting out the half 42-38, the energy couldn’t have been more uplifting. Southern Utah came out just as strong as they finished, and just two minutes into the half, the Thunderbirds were up by 12 on the Trailblazers.
It took three minutes for Utah Tech to score their first points of the half. Halfway through the period, the Trailblazers were desperately trying to make a comeback and cut the T-Birds’ lead to just five points.
In response to UTU’s sudden scoring spree, star SUU guard Elijah Duval threw down the hammer in an emphatic pull back dunk. The play was second on ESPN’s Top 10 Plays of the Night.
The Thunderbirds rolled away with the game from there, as SUU had a 13-point lead with one minute to go in the match.
Top T-Birds
— Hayhurst posted 25 points to lead the team. He also had four rebounds and a game-leading three steals.
— Jaiden Feroah also came up big, racking up another double double. He recorded 18 points, 14 rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal.
— Duval had 15 points, six rebounds, a team-leading four assists and a dunk that made ESPN’s top 10 college basketball plays of the night. He only played 18 minutes.
— Burdick had 13 points, seven rebounds, a block and a steal.
What’s next?
The Thunderbirds will be playing against Utah Valley University on Thursday, March 5, in Cedar City. The game will be starting at 6:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN+. On Saturday, March 7, the T-Birds will also be hosting California Baptist University at home. This game will also be starting at 6:30 p.m. and streamed on ESPN+.
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Author: Mitch Wilson
Photographer: SUU Athletics
Editor: Payson Davis
